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Gov. Tom Wolf To Nominate Alison Beam As Secretary Of Health Dr. Rachel Levine's Replacement

By: KDKA-TV News Staff

HARRISBURG (KDKA) - Gov. Tom Wolf intends to nominate Alison Beam to serve as state Health Secretary after Dr. Rachel Levine was tapped to become Assistant Secretary of Health for the Biden administration.

Beam is currently Wolf's Deputy Chief of Staff. She'll assume the role of Acting Secretary effective Jan. 23.

Alison Beam
(Courtesy: Governor Wolf's Office)

She graduated from Drexel University School of Law and holds a Bachelor of Science in Health Policy and Administration from the Pennsylvania State University.

"Alison Beam is a talented public servant who brings years of experience in health care policy and implementation to this position. Alison knows that a strong, widely available, and successful vaccination strategy is the path out of the pains of this pandemic," said Gov. Wolf in a statement.

"Her foremost and immediate focus will be on the strategic distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine, making sure Pennsylvania receives as many doses as possible from the federal government, and that the Pennsylvania Department of Health coordinates with hospitals, health centers, county and local governments, and pharmacy partners to make this vaccine as widely available as possible to Pennsylvanians everywhere."

Before serving as Deputy Chief of Staff, she was Chief of Staff to the Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner. She's previously served as Director of Public Policy and Associate Counsel for Independence Health Group in Philadelphia.

Wolf has also named Dr. Wendy Braund as Interim Acting Physician General, replacing Dr. Rachel Levine in that role. Braund will assume the role effective Jan. 23.

Wendy Braund
(Courtesy: Governor Wolf's Office)

Braund currently serves as the COVID-19 Response Director for the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

Levine was selected by President Joe Biden to be his Assistant Secretary of Health. If confirmed, Levine would become the first openly transgender federal official to be confirmed by the Senate.

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