On March 24, Dr. Rachel Levine, formerly Pennsylvania Secretary of Health and Penn State College of Medicine Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry, was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as Assistant Secretary of Health, making her the first-ever transgender U.S. Cabinet member and highest-ranking trans government official in the nation.
A week earlier, Human Rights Campaign President Alphonso David wrote, “Dr. Levine has proven time and again that she is a seasoned public health expert up to the task of restoring the nation in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. At a time when the transgender community is facing an outright assault on their basic rights by state legislatures, it is ever more crucial to ensure that every voice is represented in our government.”