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Rachel Levine, openly transgender health official, sworn in as four-star admiral in Public Health Service

The former Pennsylvania health secretary is the sixth four-star admiral in the history of the health corps.

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Updated October 19, 2021 at 2:09 p.m. EDT|Published October 19, 2021 at 8:30 a.m. EDT
Rachel Levine, the U.S. assistant secretary for health and the nation’s highest-ranking openly transgender official, was sworn in as an admiral of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. (Chris Sean Smith/U.S. Department of Health and Human Services)

A senior Biden health appointee who made history when she became the nation’s highest-ranking openly transgender official has also become its first openly transgender four-star officer.

Rachel Levine, the U.S. assistant secretary for health, was sworn in Tuesday as an admiral of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, a 6,000-person force that responds to health crises on behalf of the federal government, including administering coronavirus vaccines and delivering care after hurricanes. Levine is also the organization’s first-ever female four-star admiral.