Rachel Levine, an openly transgender woman, was confirmed by the Senate to be Assistant Secretary of Health for the Biden Administration, becoming the first openly transgender person to win Senate confirmation, ABC News reports.
The former Secretary of Health for Pennsylvania, Levine oversaw the state’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, an effort that was largely praised for its effectiveness and outreach. She got 52 votes in the Senate, with Maine’s Susan Collins and Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski the only Republicans to join Democrats in confirming Levine.
Levine will become the second-highest ranking official in the Department of Health and Human Services, behind HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. The Department is dealing not just with the coronavirus pandemic, but also with the influx of migrants and a high number of unaccompanied minors for whom HHS will be responsible for finding housing.
Levine is a pediatrician with a medical degree from Tulane University. She was also a professor of pediatrics and psychiatry at the Penn State University School of Medicine.