The U.S. Government was wrong in refusing to allow a Cuban-American who has won a Bronze Star for his service to this country in the Iraq war to travel to Cuba to care for a sick son.

Considering Carlos Lazo's loyalty to this country, the man's trip should not ever have been an issue. He is worthy of an exception to the Bush administration's tough sanctions aimed at squeezing Fidel Castro's government.

The administration's sanctions include restrictions on the flow of dollars to Cuba, mostly by way of Cuban-Americans, and limits on family visits. Cuban-Americans who previously were allowed one visit a year were told they could return home only once every three years.

A sick child is grounds for an exemption to that rule.

Lazo, a sergeant in the Washington State National Guard, was sent to Iraq in April 2004. Last November, he was attached to the Marines during the battle of Fallujah, where he earned the Bronze Star for braving sniper fire and mortar rounds while providing medical aid to troops.

Lazo, 40, first tried to escape Cuba in 1988 but was captured by the Cuban Coast Guard and jailed for a year. In 1992, he made it to Key West by raft, leaving behind his two sons, now ages 16 and 19.

Now an American citizen, Lazo tried in June 2004, while on leave from Iraq, to make a trip to Cuba to see his sons. He flew to Miami, only to learn that the State Department had put a hold on passengers going to Cuba.

He tried again this spring upon hearing that his 16-year-old was suffering from a high fever. The boy was hospitalized for 10 days, then released, although doctors still were uncertain why he was sick.

Lazo is concerned in the same way most parents would be.

"We trust him in Iraq, but we do not trust him to visit his own family in Cuba," said Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., in a speech on the House floor.

Sometimes exceptions to rules are in order, and this is one of those times.