Executive Order 14085: Expanding Eligibility for Certain Military Decorations and Awards
President: Joseph R. Biden Jr.
Expanded eligibility for specified military decorations by treating certain commissioned officers of the Public Health Service and NOAA Corps more like armed-forces personnel when serving with or under military command.
Status: In effect. Is Executive Order 14085 still in effect? Yes. Executive Order 14085 remains in effect. See Federal Register record.
What does Executive Order 14085 do?
Defense was to apply the revised eligibility criteria, with HHS and Commerce identifying relevant officers and the services updating records.
Before and after
Before the order
Uniformed officers outside the armed forces could serve alongside military units yet lacked equivalent eligibility for some decorations under prior executive criteria.
After the order
Departments updated awards practice and could review qualifying service under the new criteria. Later awards regulations and presidential actions govern current administration; no express revocation or material litigation was located.
Who had to do what
| Agency / office | Action | Timing / position |
|---|---|---|
| Defense | Apply expanded award criteria | From issuance |
| HHS and Commerce | Identify and process eligible officers | As cases arise |
| Services | Update awards guidance and records | Administrative schedule |
What happened next
EO 14085 signed.
No express revocation located.
Legal and source detail
How it works legally
Presidential awards authority, service statutes and departmental regulations govern eligibility. The order created no entitlement to a decoration; awards remain discretionary and record corrections follow statutory procedures.
Sources by type
If a source is unavailable, first check the cited publisher or another official repository. The cited publisher remains the authority.
Primary and official sources
Orders, laws, court records and official implementation material.
- Defense — military awards manual (opens in a new tab) Official record
How we checked this
Last checked against the sources above on September 9, 2026. How we research →