Humanitarian Service Medal — Military Decorations
Humanitarian Service Medal Medal and Ribbon Design Images
The medal is a bronze circle with an outstretched hand, palm open.
What is the Humanitarian Service Medal Decoration?
The Humanitarian Service Medal was created in 1977 by order of President Gerald Ford to recognized any member of the military who distinguishes themselves in specified military acts or operations of a humanitarian nature. Some of these situations are natural disaster relief, assistance in evacuation or non-combatants from dangerous places or support of refugees. It is expressly not awarded for services rendered in disturbances with law enforcement, riots, or protection of property. The medal is retroactive back to 1975, and each subsequent granting is denoted by a bronze star.
The United States military sorts decorations into categories called Classes and Types. The Humanitarian Service Medal medal is classified as a Service Award of the type General Service Medal.
How Do You Earn the Humanitarian Service Medal?
Personnel must have participated in a military action or manuever that provides humanitarian aid.
Displaying the Humanitarian Service Medal
The Order of Precedence of the Humanitarian Service Medal is 82, and this precedence is used when placing the associated service ribbon on your uniform ribbon rack. You can see a full list of decorations in the order of precedence on the Decorations homepage.
The ribbon is worn between the Armed Forces Service Medal and the Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal.
Humanitarian Service Medal Associated Branches
Army |
 |
Navy |
 |
Air Force |
 |
Marine Corps |
 |
Coast Guard |
 |
Humanitarian Service Medal Associated Branches
Army |
|
Navy |
|
Air Force |
|
Marine Corps |
 |
Coast Guard |
|
Humanitarian Service Medal and the Stolen Valor Act
The Stolen Valor Act of 2013 is a federal law that makes it illegal for any person to falsely claim to be the recipient of certain military awards, "with the intention of obtaining money, property, or other tangible benefit by convincing another that he or she received the award".This decoration is covered by the Stolen Valor act. Fraudulently claiming to have received a Humanitarian Service Medal can result in punishment including a fine, imprisonment for not more than one year, or both
