Prior to 1963, the Medal of Honor could be awarded for actions not involving direct combat with "an enemy of the United States" or "opposing foreign force [s]" (actions against a party in which the U.S. is not directly engaged in war with).
The vast majority of the non-combat medals were awarded to members of the United States Navy for their actions during boiler explosions, man-overboard incidents, and other hazards of naval service.
The last award of the Medal of Honor for valor not in combat was Francis P. Hammerberg, a United States Navy diver who received the Medal of Honor posthumously for rescuing two fellow divers at Pearl Harbor in the then Territory of Hawaii.
The Medal of Honor was created during the American Civil War and is the highest military decoration presented by the United States to a member of its armed forces.
Currently, the recipient must have distinguished themselves at the risk of their own life above and beyond the call of duty in action against "an enemy of the United States" or "an opposing foreign force."