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Young Cubans turn to church and state as cheap, synthetic drugs flood the streets
Use of synthetic drug quimico nearly doubled emergency visits from 467 in 2024 to 886 in 2025, prompting state and church to expand rehabilitation and monitoring efforts.
- By 2025, Cuba's emergency rooms registered 886 drug-related cases, nearly double the 467 in 2024, as young adults aged 20 to 30 increasingly seek treatment at the Havana Psychiatric Hospital's 40-bed detox ward.
- Col. Juan Carlos Poey Guerra of Cuba's Interior Ministry said precursor substances for químico originate mainly from the United States, while a deepening economic crisis and low-cost synthetics fueled consumption.
- Also known as "papelitos", químico is a potent cocktail of synthetic cannabinoids and hazardous additives absorbed into paper sheets, sliced into tiny doses and smoked at roughly 250 Cuban pesos per hit.
- In July, Cuba's Ministry of Health and state agencies established a National Drug Observatory to research and mitigate illegal drugs, while the country maintains a zero-tolerance policy with trafficking punishable by life imprisonment.
- Pastor Abel Pérez of Alcance Victoria Cuba church reported neighborhoods are "infested" with visible drug use, while 23-year-old Daniel Fulleda, admitted in January, described depression and homelessness before seeking treatment.
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Associated Press News+21 Reposted by 21 other sources
Young Cubans turn to church and state as cheap, synthetic drugs flood the streets
Cuba is grappling with a fast-growing wave of synthetic drug use that is hitting young people hard. On a recent weekday, The Associated Press visited Havana’s psychiatric hospital and saw men struggling to stay clean, vowing for the sake of their loved ones to rid their bodies of toxins in the next
·United States
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“I swear on the lives of my loved ones that I will reject for 24 hours the consumption of the toxics that enslave me,” chanted in unison several dozen young people held hands days ago at the Psychiatric Hospital in Havana.
Coverage Details
Total News Sources23
Leaning Left9Leaning Right3Center9Last UpdatedBias Distribution43% Left, 43% Center
Bias Distribution
- 43% of the sources lean Left, 43% of the sources are Center
43% Center
L 43%
C 43%
14%
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