Like the Outstanding Unit Citation, the Unit Commendation award is typically issued to recognize distinct actions that were performed over a relatively short period time that can be marked by specific start and end dates. For either award, officers of the Commissioned Corps of the United States Public Health Service garner a unit because of their combined contributions as a collective to the actions that are being honored. As a general rule, all officers in a unit are eligible for either the Outstanding Unit Citation or the Unit Commendation award, but this does not mean that the performance of each officer is not reviewed individually to determine how appropriate it is to include them in the award; neither does it mean that the roles each officer played need to be delineated in a nomination package (unless it provides greater clarity for the recommendation).
The Unit Commendation award was created to recognize and acknowledge the achievements and contributions of officers that not only are significant on their own merits, but which also far exceed what is normally expected. Further, these exceptional works should further the accomplishment of the objectives and goals of the officers’ Operating or Staff Division or a non-HHS organization to which they have been detailed. Normally, the accomplishments recognized by the Unit Commendation award have an impact at the State or regional level, while achievements with national in international ramifications are honored with the Outstanding Unit Citation.
The rules for awarding authority give the Surgeon General the ability to approve the award of the Unit Commendation directly in certain cases. Examples include instances where a potential conflict of interest exists for the delegated authority to approve the award or when an officers is detailed to an organization for which awarding authority is vague or unclear.