National Defense Service Medal
The National Defense Service Medal is a military decoration of the United States military originally commissioned by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. Created in 1953, the National Defense Service Medal was intended to be a “blanket campaign medal” awarded to any member of the United States military who served in a designated time period of which a “national emergency” had been declared.
In the fifty years since the creation of the National Defense Service Medal, it is authorized only for the following time periods.
- June 27, 1950 to July 27, 1954 for service during the Korean War
- January 1, 1961 to August 14, 1974 for service during the Vietnam War
- August 2, 1990 to November 30, 1995 for service during the Gulf War
- September 11, 2001 to a date to be announced for service during the War on Terrorism
The National Defense Service Medal is awarded to anyone who serves on active duty in the United States military during the above time periods. For service in the Gulf War and War on Terrorism, it is also authorized for members of the military reserve or national guard who are ordered to active duty. The National Defense Service Medal is further authorized to students at the service academies after they are sworn in as military officers, but is not granted to discharged or retired veterans who did not serve in one of the above time periods. The decoration is also not authorized to members of the inactive reserve.
Multiple awards of the National Defense Service Medal are authorized for members of the military who served in more than one of the eligible time periods; such additional awards are denoted by service stars. A second award of the medal is not granted for reenlisting during the same time period or transferring between branches of service.
Legal
Any false verbal, written or physical claim to an award or decoration authorized for wear by authorized military members or veterans is a federal felony offense punishable by up to a year in jail and up to a $5000 fine.