Currently, only officers and servicemembers killed in action receive full funeral military honors — a military band and a horse-drawn caisson. A new bill introduced in the House of Representatives wants to change that so that all Medal of Honor recipients and prisoners of war receive the same.
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“Valor knows no rank,” Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, said in a statement. “Providing full military honors is the least we can do for our prisoners of war and Medal of Honor recipients. This bill will rightfully recognize and honor their courageous service and sacrifices.”
A similar bill made it through the Senate late last year but was unsuccessful in making it out of the House.
The demand for full military honors at funerals is already almost too high for Arlington National Cemetery to manage — last year, the wait was anywhere from seven to nine months. And that's with roughly 30 burials a day.
But these lawmakers are confident that the time and effort is worth it for any recipient of the Medal of Honor or prisoner of war.