1. Rachel Leland Levine is an American pediatrician who served as the United States assistant secretary for health, the admiral in charge of the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, from 2021 until 2025.
24 Facts About Rachel Levine
1. 2.
Rachel Levine is one of only a few openly transgender government officials in the United States, and is the first to hold an office that requires Senate confirmation.
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On October 19,2021, Rachel Levine became the first openly transgender four-star officer in the nation's eight uniformed services.
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Rachel Levine was named as one of USA Todays women of the year in 2022, which recognizes women who have made a significant impact on society.
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Rachel Levine earned a high school diploma from Belmont Hill School in Belmont, Massachusetts.
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Rachel Levine graduated from Harvard College and the Tulane University School of Medicine, completing a residency in pediatrics and a postdoctoral fellowship in adolescent medicine at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in Manhattan, New York.
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Rachel Levine was in charge of the latter when she was nominated for the position of Pennsylvania physician general in 2015.
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In 2015, Rachel Levine was nominated by Pennsylvania Governor-elect Tom Wolf to serve as Pennsylvania's physician general.
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In one of her most lauded actions as physician general, Rachel Levine signed an order allowing law enforcement officers to carry naloxone.
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Rachel Levine worked closely on a daily basis with the FEMA director and led a daily press briefing.
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Rachel Levine came in for criticism over her handling of the pandemic, particularly in regard to nursing home patients.
12.
Spotlight PA, noted that, under Rachel Levine, Pennsylvania had a "robust and aggressive" plan to protect nursing home residents but it "was never fully implemented".
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On May 12,2020, WHTM reported that following the change in nursing home admissions policies, Rachel Levine had moved her own mother out of a nursing home.
14.
Rachel Levine is very intelligent and more than competent to make her own decisions.
15.
On 13 February 2021, President Joe Biden formally nominated Rachel Levine to serve as Assistant Secretary for Health.
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Rachel Levine is the first openly transgender person to hold an office that requires Senate confirmation.
17.
On 19 October 2021, Rachel Levine was commissioned as a four-star admiral in the US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, becoming the first openly transgender four-star officer in any of the United States uniformed services as well as the first female four-star admiral in the Commissioned Corps.
18.
Shortly after her confirmation, Rachel Levine told NBC News that LGBTQ youth are topmost in her mind when it comes to addressing health disparities in the United States.
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Rachel Levine cited bullying, suicide, discriminatory policies, and isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic as pressing issues among LGBTQ youth.
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Rachel Levine has expressed concerns about vaccine hesitancy among LGBTQ youth who are more likely to experience medical distrust and less likely to seek medical care.
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Rachel Levine has two children with Martha Peaslee Levine, whom she married in 1988 during Levine's last year of medical school.
22.
Rachel Levine began exploring her gender identity in her 40s, and transitioned in 2011.
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Rachel Levine has served as a board member of Equality Pennsylvania, an LGBT rights organization.
24.
Rachel Levine was named as one of USA Todays Women of the Year in 2022.