Rachel Levine

Rachel Levine (born Richard Leland Levine; October 28, 1957) is an American pediatrician and public health official who served as Assistant Secretary for Health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services from March 2021 until January 20, 2025. Levine, a graduate of Harvard College and Tulane University School of Medicine, held academic positions as a professor of pediatrics and psychiatry at Penn State College of Medicine. Prior to her federal role, she was appointed Pennsylvania Physician General in 2015 and elevated to Secretary of Health in early 2017, overseeing the state's response to public health crises including the opioid epidemic and COVID-19 pandemic. In October 2021, Levine was commissioned as a four-star admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, becoming its highest-ranking officer.

Levine's career is distinguished by her advocacy for certain public health measures, though it has also been defined by notable controversies, particularly during her tenure as Pennsylvania Secretary of Health. Policies under her leadership directed COVID-19-positive patients into nursing homes, which critics argue exacerbated mortality rates among vulnerable elderly populations, with over 12,000 long-term care deaths reported in the state by mid-. These decisions, coupled with incomplete reporting of nursing home death data—later attributed to systemic lags—drew bipartisan scrutiny during her Senate confirmation hearings. Additionally, Levine's prominence as the first individual identifying as transgender to attain a four-star uniformed rank and a Senate-confirmed federal health position has highlighted debates over identity-based appointments in public service. Her earlier work in adolescent medicine has intersected with discussions on interventions for gender dysphoria, reflecting her influence on policy areas lacking robust long-term empirical validation.