La Paz, Bolivia.- The Bolivian doctors who graduated in Cuba and Venezuela are in an emergency today, after learning that the health minister appointed by the de facto regime, Anibal Cruz, has been firing them arbitrarily.

Some 400 physicians in Cochabamba department expressed their discontent because over the past few weeks, five colleagues in the city of Arbieto denounced their unjustified layoffs following Cruz’s instructions, the newspaper Los Tiempos reported.

The president of the Association of Doctors Graduated Abroad, Wilber Barral, noted that the professionals have more than five years of experience, and recalled that their diplomas were certified by the State under international agreements.

According to official statistics, more than 2,000 Bolivians who graduated from the Latin American School of Medicine (ELAM) in Cuba, of some 5,000 doctors who studied abroad, were working in the Mi Salud (My Health) program, created in 2013 by then President Evo Morales to provide free health care to the people and improve medical centers.

People from 311 of 319 Bolivian municipalities benefited from the services provided by the physicians, who gave more than 20 million free consults, 50% of which were home calls.