Head of NC health department stepping down, replaced by state’s 1st openly gay Cabinet member

Kody Kinsley (pictured) will be North Carolina’s first openly gay Cabinet member in state government history. (Photo from ncdhhs.gov)

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) | Dr. Mandy Cohen, the head of North Carolina’s health department and face of regular updates on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the state for two years, is stepping down from her post, Gov. Roy Cooper announced Nov. 30.

“Dr. Cohen, North Carolinians owe you a deep debt of gratitude,” Cooper said during Tuesday’s briefing by the state Coronavirus Task Force. “You have been such a blessing to our state.”

According to the news release, Cohen plans to spend more time with her family while exploring new opportunities to carry on her work to improve the state’s health and well-being. The news release didn’t elaborate, and Cohen would only say “a bit of rest and recovery” was in store for her next, calling the past two years “quite a marathon.”

Kody Kinsley, chief deputy secretary for health at the department and lead for COVID-19 operations, will replace Cohen on Jan. 1, 2022, the news release said.

Cooper’s office said Kinsley, a Wilmington native, would be the first openly gay Cabinet member in state government history. He is subject to a conformation vote by the state Senate, and all but one of Cooper’s Cabinet choices have been approved by the Senate since he took office in early 2017.

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