Coalition calls for WWII nurses to receive honor

A coalition of retired military nurses and others is advocating for World War II nurses to receive the Congressional Gold Medal, one of the nation’s highest civilian honors. The estimated 59,000 army nurses and 14,000 navy nurses received little recognition once they returned to civilian life, despite their feats in dodging bullets and treating the wounds of troops. Some served time as prisoners of war. The coalition knows of only five who are still alive and fears time is running out to honor them. Sens. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis. and Steve Daines, R-Mont., and Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) introduced AONL-supported legislation (S. 2195/H.R. 4901) to award the medal to the nurses, but it needs more congressional support to pass. (MedPage Today article, 11/11/25)