Dr. Rachel
Levine has been confirmed in a bipartisan Senate vote to be assistant secretary
of health at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Levine’s
historic nomination has now also earned her the distinction of being
the first transgender federal official to be confirmed.
Sens. Susan
Collins (R-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) joined all Democrats in voting yes.
“Dr. Levine’s
nomination represents a historic first for the transgender community in the
United States,” said Equality PAC Co-Chairs Reps. Mark Takano (D-CA) and David
Cicilline (D-RI). “Through all the transphobic attacks and bigotry that Dr.
Levine endured during her confirmation process, she persevered, and the work
and her determination paid off. We want to extend our enthusiastic
congratulations to Dr. Levine on this amazing achievement and we thank
President Biden for his decision to appoint Dr. Levine to this important post.”
“As we
continue to battle the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we could not think of a
better, more capable person to help lead the Department of Health and Human
Services.”
Sen. Rand Paul
(R-KY) went on an anti-transgender tirade when questioning Dr. Levine during
her nomination committee hearing, using demeaning and insulting language.
Nominating
Levine signaled the importance of fighting the COVID-19 pandemic for the Biden
administration. As surgeon general of the state of Pennsylvania, she led the
state’s response to the pandemic, at times facing heavy criticism – and
straight-up transphobia – from conservatives in her state.
“Dr. Rachel
Levine is a remarkable public servant with the knowledge and experience to help
us contain this pandemic, and protect and improve the health and well-being of
the American people,” said Vice President-elect Kamala Harris in a statement.
“President-elect Biden and I look forward to working with her to meet the
unprecedented challenges facing Americans and rebuild our country in a way that
lifts everyone up.”
Her
appointment also signals the Biden administration’s commitment to end attacks
on LGBTQ health. HHS was at the center of numerous attacks on LGBTQ people
during the Trump administration.
“Today, with
Dr. Rachel Levine’s historic confirmation, transgender Americans will be able
to see themselves in a position of profound leadership,” Erin Uritus, CEO of
Out & Equal Workplace Advocates, said. “Dr. Levine’s confirmation is more
important than ever. Her leadership and expertise will help guide our country
out of the COVID-19 pandemic into healthier, brighter days.
“Dr. Levine’s
confirmation is significant on many levels. In recent years, HHS has served as
a tool to target LGBTQ – especially transgender – healthcare rights. Dr. Levine
will be able to bring new skillsets and empathy into this position to help
protect LGBTQ healthcare rights.”
During the
Trump administration, HHS spent four years attempting to roll
back LGBTQ protections based on Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act so
that health care providers could more easily discriminate; rolling back anti-LGBTQ
discrimination protections for the recipients of HHS grant money, funds
that often go to adoption and fostering agencies as well as health care and
homelessness programs; redefining “gender” to mean
“sex assigned at birth” in order to legally erase transgender identity; scrubbed
LGBTQ health care information from its website; and stopped
funding HIV/AIDS research that involves fetal tissue, which is necessary
for many aspects of HIV/AIDS research.
While she was
confirmed three times by the GOP-controlled state senate during her tenure at
Pennsylvania’s Department of Health, she faced an unprecedented deluge of
transphobic attacks as she tried to get Pennsylvanians to wear masks and
practice social distancing.
Last year, an
evangelical minister exhorted his followers to “rise
up” and “chase” the doctor out of the state. He repeatedly referred to her
as “it,” “a man,” and a “freak transvestite.”
“You are
absolutely insane if you let that transvestite freak rule your life,” pastor
Rick Wiles screamed. “You’re going to that transvestite freak? Seriously?”
In July, a
Pennsylvania tavern apologized
for a transphobic menu item designed to taunt Dr. Levine. And around
the same time, a popular Pennsylvania fair, the Bloomsburg Fair, used
a Dr. Levine “impersonator” (which was a man in a wig and a dress) in
their dunk tank and published a mocking Facebook post about it.
SOURCE: LGBTQ NATION
So happy. And glad the Repugs were smart enough not to make a scene about this. Biden is doing some amazing things... has it been 100 days? No? Well, the man has done more in less than 100 days than the former did in four.
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