WWII Nurses Finally Get Congressional Gold Medal: Bill Acknowledges Bravery and Historical Pay Inequity

This legislation, titled the WWII Nurses Congressional Gold Medal Act, is straightforward: it grants the Congressional Gold Medal to the Army and Navy nurses who served during World War II. It’s a formal, high-level recognition of their service, which the bill notes was often performed under fire and, for many years, without the full military status, pay, or benefits granted to their male counterparts.

The Long-Overdue Honor

This bill is essentially Congress acknowledging a historical debt. The findings section details the incredible service of over 73,000 Army and Navy nurses who volunteered, often working in field hospitals under constant shelling—like the nurses at Anzio, who famously dug foxholes outside their tents. Crucially, the bill highlights that these women served despite initially receiving only half the pay and lacking formal military status until legislation caught up in 1947. This context makes the Gold Medal more than just a commemorative piece; it’s a formal recognition of service that was historically undervalued. The award itself will be overseen by the Speaker of the House and the President pro tempore of the Senate (Section 3).

Where the Medal Goes (And How You Can Get a Copy)

Once struck, the actual gold medal is headed straight to the Smithsonian Institution, where it will be preserved and available for research and display (Section 3). Congress specifically encourages the Smithsonian to make it available for display at relevant sites, like the Women in Military Service for America Memorial, ensuring the history stays accessible to the public.

Now, for the part that pays for itself: The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to create and sell bronze duplicates of the medal to the public. This isn’t a profit venture; the price of these bronze copies must be set high enough to cover all production costs, including materials, labor, and overhead (Section 4). This mechanism ensures that the production of the official medal and the duplicates doesn't rely on new appropriations, drawing instead from the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund and replenishing it with sales proceeds (Section 6). This effectively makes the recognition process self-funding.

Making it Official: Numismatic Status

For those who care about the technical side of government awards, the bill classifies the medals as “national medals” and, specifically for the purposes of sales and collection, as “numismatic items” (Section 5). This means the bronze duplicates are treated just like collectible coins by the U.S. Mint, streamlining the process for their production and sale. Ultimately, this bill is a focused, administrative measure designed to give a long-overdue, high-profile salute to a remarkable group of WWII veterans.