Lexington Commissioner of Health Rice Leach passed away Friday morning following a battle with cancer.
A Kentucky native with public health professional experience at the federal, state, and local levels, Leach served as state public health commissioner from 1992 to 2004.
Louisville State Representative and retired surgeon Bob DeWeese put Leach’s impact in six words. “That was his life, public health."
The 75-year-old most recently served as Lexington’s Commissioner of Health. Henderson State Representative David Watkins says the Lexington native was a strong advocate for smoking cessation and immunizations. “And to try to reduce the infant mortality, trying to improve our outcomes in our pregnancies. So, he was really just a positive person for all the citizens and all the kids in our state,” said Watkins.
In addition to his service at the state and local levels, Dr. Leach also served in federal government as chief of staff to the surgeon general.?
