Hegseth, who recently oversaw the stripping of a base name honoring a Harlem Hellfighter, presented the award to descendants of the Harlem Hellfighters.
This overturns a 2022 demotion that followed a scathing investigation that found major issues with his behavior while he was the top White House physician.
While many veterans are doing well in their transition to civilian life, their risk of suicide remains significantly higher than in the general population.