WWII Nurses Finally Get Congressional Gold Medal: Bill Acknowledges Decades of Unrecognized Service

The aptly named WWII Nurses Congressional Gold Medal Act is a straightforward piece of legislation aimed at correcting a historical oversight by authorizing the highest civilian honor—the Congressional Gold Medal—for the thousands of Army and Navy nurses who served during World War II.

This bill isn't about setting up a new program or changing your tax bracket; it’s about formal recognition. It starts by acknowledging the staggering statistics: over 73,000 nurses volunteered, often serving under fire in field hospitals and on torpedoed ships. Crucially, the bill highlights that these women were initially denied full military status, receiving half the pay of their male counterparts and zero veteran benefits, even while being captured as POWs or killed in action. This medal is a formal acknowledgment of their service and the serious risks they took, which ultimately led to fewer than 4% of wounded or sick American soldiers dying in the field.

The Long Road to Recognition

While Congress eventually granted these nurses temporary rank and benefits late in the war (1944), and permanent status in 1947, this bill emphasizes the delayed recognition and the discrimination faced by African-American nurses who were severely limited by quotas until 1944. This legislation serves as a final, formal 'thank you' for the bravery demonstrated by nurses who waded ashore under sniper fire in North Africa or endured 37 months of starvation in Japanese prison camps while still caring for the sick.

What Happens Next with the Medal?

Under Section 3, the Speaker of the House and the President pro tempore of the Senate are tasked with arranging the presentation of the medal. The Secretary of the Treasury will strike the medal, which will then be transferred to the Smithsonian Institution. This is where it gets interesting for history buffs and educators: the medal won't just sit in a vault. Congress specifically requests that the Smithsonian make the medal available for display and research, with a strong hope that it will travel to places relevant to the nurses' service, such as the Women in Military Service for America Memorial and the National World War II Museum.

How the Public Can Get Involved

If you want a piece of this history, Section 4 authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to create and sell bronze duplicates of the medal. This isn't a government fundraiser; the price of these duplicates must be set high enough only to cover the full cost of production, including labor, materials, and overhead. The money generated from these sales goes right back into the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund, as detailed in Section 6, effectively covering the costs of making the commemorative items without dipping into general taxpayer funds. By classifying these as "national medals" and "numismatic items" (Section 5), the bill ensures they are treated as official, collectible artifacts, cementing the legacy of these WWII nurses.