U.S. to Begin Issuing Medals to Former POWs

About 142,200 individuals or their families will be eligible for a new military medal honoring American prisoners of war, the Defense Department announced Friday.

“The medal will be issued at no cost to any person who was taken prisoner of war and held captive after April 5, 1917,” the Pentagon said in announcing that it was ready to begin issuing the award, which Congress authorized two years ago.

“To qualify, an individual must have been taken prisoner during an armed conflict; i.e., World War I, World War II, Korea and Vietnam, and must have rendered honorable service during the period of captivity,” the Pentagon statement said.

The medal can be awarded posthumously to next of kin, but the Pentagon said the criteria established by Congress would not allow relatives of servicemen “who are listed as missing in action, but for whom there is no evidence of captivity as a POW,” to receive the medal.

The Defense Department estimated that 142,200 individuals or their next of kin were eligible for the medal, which features an eagle surrounded by barbed wire and bayonet points and includes the inscription, “For Honorable Service While a Prisoner of War.”

A toll-free telephone number, 800-873-3768, has been set up for individuals to request an application form for the medal, the Pentagon said. The application forms will be distributed by several veterans’ organizations and public service agencies also.

The Pentagon said it would prefer individuals to use the application form but would accept a personal letter mailed to the proper military records center providing the same information as that sought on the form.