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Commissioned Officers’ Awards Program (COAP)
Frequently Asked Questions
Awards FAQs Guide:
Nominations
Awards Processing
Awards Documentation (eOPF and PIR)
Awards Limits and Restrictions
Purchasing Medals and Ribbons1.What resources are available for information on the PHS Commissioned Officers’ Awards Program?Commissioned Corps Instruction (CCI) CCI 511.01 – Awards Program, CCI511.02 – Award of Military Decorations, CCI512.01 – Wear of Awards and Badges, POM 08-003 – Commissioned Corps Awards Processing. For additional questions please contact your: OPDIV/Agency Awards Coordinators (AACs) and Commissioned Corps Liaisons.2.Who can nominate PHS Commissioned Corps Officers for awards?A fellow officer, co-worker, superior, or someone outside of the Commissioned Corps with knowledge of the accomplishment(s) deserving recognition may initiate the nomination of an officer or a group of officers as candidate(s) for an individual honor or unit award. However, officers cannot nominate themselves.3.How do I nominate an officer for an award?The nominator should review the criteria for each award level (CCI 511.01), as well as the guidelines on the COAP Write-Up Guidance and Tips webpage. The 2 page maximum narrative should concisely describe the above and beyond achievement or accomplishments of the officer(s). For agency awards, send the narrative together with respective PDF-fillable form PHS-6342-1 (Unit Awards), or PHS-6342-2 (Individual Awards) through the OPDIV/Agency’s Line of Authority for signatures. The ACC can provide Line of Authority information. For deployments, PAC or SG appointed groups, work through your team or group’s chain of command.4.What is the time limit to initiate an individual or unit honor nomination?Recommendation for individual or unit honor award must be formally initiated within 13 months after the noteworthy act or specific period of service to be recognized. The nominator’s date on the form must be within 13 months of the end of the period covered.5.Which awards require board review?- PHS Citation (CIT) and Achievement Medals (AM): Many OPDIVs/Agencies are delegated the authority to approve these awards without requiring Awards Board review, although most still utilize a final review by their Agency Awards Board for quality control.
- Commendation Medal (CM), Outstanding Service Medal (OSM), and Unit Commendation (UC): Nominations require an Awards Board review and recommendation prior to approval by the delegated approval authority.
- Meritorious Service Medal (MSM), Distinguished Service Medal (DSM), and Outstanding Unit Citation (OUC): Nominations for these awards require two Awards Board reviews, including a final review and recommendation by the Commissioned Corps Awards Board (CCAB) prior to final approval by the Surgeon General (SG).
- Nominations that fall outside an OPDIV/Agency Awards Program with their own Board are forwarded to the Office of the Surgeon General Awards Board (OSGAB) for review and recommendation to the SG for final approval.
6.What type of documentation is provided with an approved award?All approved awards are processed by the COAP Team in the system of record. The award is viewable in the eOPF PIR by information automatically transmitted after processing. The award nomination packet is forwarded to the file room for upload and indexing to the eOPF. COAP will then forward certificates and medal sets to the OPDIV/Agency Awards Coordinators for dissemination.
Certificates and corresponding full medal sets (large medal, miniature medal, and ribbon bar) are only provided to officers receiving each of the Individual Honor Awards for the first time. Officers receiving a subsequent Individual Honor Award will receive a certificate only through their AAC.7.How do I check the award status after I am nominated?Officers should always contact their AAC first, or nominator in the case of deployment awards, to check on the status of an award submission. They should be able to give the officer any type of information regarding the status of the award, e.g. has it been approved, has it been sent to DCCPR/COAP. The AAC or nominator will then reach out to COAP regarding any outstanding issues with a pending award – not the officer. It can take up to 90 days from the time an award is submitted to COAP for it to be processed and visible on the PIR, and another 60 days for the support documents to be uploaded and indexed to the eOPF.Awards Documentation (eOPF and PIR)
8.How do I resolve missing or incorrect awards issues in my eOPF and PIR?Reach out to your AAC first to assist in troubleshooting the issue. Awards are processed electronically and will show on the PIR. If the award is missing from the PIR (data transfer issues may have occurred in the DA transition), then notify COAP at COAP@hhs.gov of the issue. Ensure you include your PHS SERNO with a detailed explanation of what award is missing.
Issues regarding incorrect support documentation in the Awards Section of the eOPF need to be directed to the COAP Manager: COAP@hhs.gov. Please explain the problem in detail.9.There are typos in the Unit and/or Citation entries on the new PIR awards list, can I get those fixed?Unfortunately, COAP does not have the resources to correct previous entries.10.My prior service awards are not on file. How can I get authorization to wear them?Email a secure copy of your DD214 or DD215 (do not send certificates, unless received subsequent to issuance of the DD214) as an attachment to the Awards Coordinator at COAP@hhs.gov. Not all prior service awards are authorized for wear with the PHS uniform. This is the ONLY documentation that will be accepted directly from an officer. See #13 below for DoD, U.S. Coast Guard and NOAA awards processing.11.I am missing awards documentation for a PHS honor award. How can I get the award into my file?There are many steps in Awards processing. It is possible your award is not fully processed. Check your your PIR first. If you know you’ve been nominated for an award, follow up with your Awards Coordinator or Agency Liaison (or nominator in the case of deployment awards) to find out when it was submitted to COAP. These individuals have the best information on the status of your award.12.Why are my agency awards or PAC Certificates of Appreciation not appearing in the awards section of the PIR?Only PHS awards listed in the Awards Policy and similar wearable awards received while assigned to DoD, U.S Coast Guard, or NOAA are entered into the Awards section. Some agency honor awards that have associated ribbons ( i.e. EPA awards) are also entered.13.How do I get my PAC award into the PHS Awards & non-PHS Awards section?Utilize the eDOC-U feature to upload these items following the eDOC-U guidance provided. ( e.g. PAC awards and high-level agency awards can be uploaded here as an Agency/Category award. This section is NOT for certificates of appreciation, foreign performance badges, and non-PHS authorized military associated badges or ribbons). Submit those documents under certificate of appreciation, which will be listed under the PHS Supporting Activities section.14.Where is my Regular Corps ribbon write-up?There is no write-up for the Regular Corps ribbon. Check your PIR to make certain the ribbon is listed there. That is the only place it will appear in the record. Do not submit an image of your Regular Corps certificate to the eOPF.15.I received an award from my prior DoD/CG duty assignment, but now I’m in another agency, how do I get it recorded?Do NOT submit documents directly to COAP. Submit all award documentation to your Agency Awards Coordinator or Commissioned Corps Agency Liaison for verification and administrative checks. They will forward the documentation to COAP for processing.16.Where’s my service award (ISOHAR, FDA, SAA, CCTR, etc.), or FMRB write-up?Due to several factors, there will be no supporting documentation uploaded to the eOPF for the majority of service awards. Please refer to your expanded PIR for all citation information entered on awards, including these. Most GRSA, CRSA and RSA deployment events will have supporting documentation uploaded after processing and when the mission is complete.Awards Limits and Restrictions
17.As a Commissioned Corps officer, am I eligible for cash awards?By law, Commissioned Corps officers are eligible for cash awards for only three different categories: inventions, suggestions, and special acts of scientific achievement. The authority for cash awards to officers is set forth in Title 42 U.S.C. 213a(a)(15) and Title 10 U.S.C. 1124. Cash awards will not be made to officers for superior performance of assigned duties or for contributions which reasonably may be considered to be within the scope of those duties. The criteria for cash awards can be found in the CCPM, Chapter CC27, Subchapter 27.1, INSTRUCTION 5 (Commissioned Officers' Incentive Awards Program; Cash Awards for Inventions, Suggestions, and Scientific Achievements - PDF, 169kb).18.How many awards can I receive? Is the number limited by time?There are neither minimum nor maximum numbers of nominations that may be submitted by organizations to which Corps officers are detailed. Each award nomination is assessed upon its own merits in comparison with criteria. However, an officer cannot be nominated for an additional award overlapping a previous award for the same achievement or activity.19.Can I receive an honor award in addition to a Unit Commendation for the same achievement?An officer, who has demonstrated a level of accomplishment that significantly exceeds the efforts of other members of the unit, may be nominated for an Individual Honor Award in which the award nomination must clearly specify the achievement or activity beyond the group accomplishment.20.Where can I purchase medal set replacements/extra ribbons, etc?Walter Reed National Military Medical Center - Uniform Center
8901 Wisconsin Avenue, Building 1
Bethesda, MD 20889
301-295-1489
https://www.mynavyexchange.com/nex/uniforms
UltraThin – (The only company that has Commissioned Corps ribbons)
800-758-7265
405-794-7892
https://www.ultrathin.com/21.I still have questions, where can I get more information?Please contact your Commissioned Corps Agency Liaison or visit the COAP website.