Tributes flowed from Nicola Sturgeon and John Swinney, who lauded Freeman’s public service, compassion, and leadership during the Covid-19 era, with Swinney underscoring her dignity, fairness, and respect as health secretary.

Freeman was elected MSP in 2016 and led the creation of Scotland’s new social security service as minister for social security.

Her political arc included early civil service work at the Scottish Parliament, a role as special adviser to then-first minister Jack McConnell, and involvement with Women for Independence before joining the SNP.

Her legacy is tempered by ongoing public inquiries into hospital infections and deaths linked to care homes and hospital facilities, which remained controversial into 2026.

In media interviews, Freeman acknowledged not claiming perfect decisions but defended acting in the best interests given the information available at the time.

In 2025, she reflected on the pressures of leading a health department during a global crisis, recognizing mistakes while defending the overall choices made with contemporaneous evidence.

During the pandemic, Freeman steered vaccine rollout and crisis management, while facing scrutiny over policies like discharging elderly patients to care homes without negative tests, which she later defended as the best option at the time.

She defended those discharge policies as the best possible decision given the information available then.

Her tenure also involved addressing pre-existing hospital safety concerns, including issues at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital and delaying the Sick Children’s Hospital in Edinburgh to fix ventilation and water systems, with added costs.

The Edinburgh Sick Children’s Hospital opening was postponed in 2019 due to ventilation issues, causing a two-year delay and about £40 million in extra costs, though it averted a Glasgow-like crisis.

Freeman held leadership roles beyond politics, chairing the Golden Jubilee Foundation and serving on the Parole Board for Scotland and the Judicial Appointments Board.

After leaving Holyrood, she gave evidence to the UK Covid Inquiry and the Scottish Hospitals Inquiry, and volunteered at the Beatson cancer unit in Glasgow, reflecting candidly on her record and the context of decisions.