Blake Hall
The Pentagon is revisiting the cases of 1,100 valor awards issued after 9/11 to determine whether or not they should be upgraded to a Medal of Honor, the country’s most prestigious distinction for heroism in the military.
In March 2014, then-Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel requested a study of military decoration to make sure that “after 13 years of combat the awards system appropriately recognizes the service, sacrifices and action of our service members.”
Defense Secretary Ashton Carter is making good on that study by fast-tracking the reviewing process. If all goes well, dozens of troops whose heroism in Iraq and Afghanistan was overlooked may finally get the recognition they deserve.
Only 17 Medals of Honor have been awarded since 2002, four posthumously awarded to veterans who served in Iraq and 13 to veterans who served in Afghanistan.
Marine veteran Rep. Duncan Hunter of California expressed his support for the Pentagon’s medal review, blaming government red tape for the fact that so few troops receive the Medal of Honor in the first place.
“It’s a systemic problem,” Hunter said. “I’m glad they’re finally getting around to fixing it. This is military bureaucracy at its worst.”
Carter also wants to create new medals in order to recognize military members who execute drone strikes and to limit other combat awards only to those who experienced “significant risk.” Another problem he hopes to address is how long it takes for a Medal of Honor to be awarded. For example, it took three years for the most recent Medal of Honor recipient, Florent Groberg, to finally receive his medal.