“She is a historic and deeply qualified choice to help lead our administration’s health efforts.”

Dr Rachel Levine is set to become the first transgender federal official in the United States. Levine was chosen by President-elect Joe Biden today as his assistant secretary of health in the US Department of Health and Human Services. Pennsylvania’s current health secretary, Levine is a professor of paediatrics and psychiatry at the Penn State College of Medicine. She has most recently been the face of the State's Covid-19 response and has written at length about a multitude of health issues affecting the American public including the opioid crisis, eating disorders, mental health, and LGBT+ treatments. Biden confirmed the news in statement, saying: “Dr Rachel Levine will bring the steady leadership and essential expertise we need to get people through this pandemic – no matter their zip code, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability – and meet the public health needs of our country in this critical moment and beyond. "She is a historic and deeply qualified choice to help lead our administration’s health efforts.” Biden is set to take office alongside Vice President-elect Kamala Harris tomorrow, January 20. He has nominated Xavier Becerra as health secretary.