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The official end of World War II did not take place until the coming into effect of the treaty with Japan on April 28, 1952, by which time the United States was already involved in the Korean conflict. The official end of the war would have returned the PHS Corps, which was involved in supporting the military action in Korea, to a non-military status, but by interim legislation the Congress on April 14, 1952 continued certain wartime powers of the President, including the authority to declare the PHS Corps to be a military service. By Executive Order No. 10349, dated April 26, 1952, President Truman maintained the status of the PHS Corps as a part of the country's land and naval forces. By Public Law 450, approved July 3, 1952, the Congress again extended certain wartime powers of the President, but did not continue his authority to declare the PHS Corps to be a military service. In the absence of such authority, and in the absence of a formal state of war, the PHS Corps was no longer a military service. The Public Health Service Act was later amended to state that the President might declare the PHS Corps to be a military service not only in time of threatened or actual war, but also in "an emergency involving the national defense proclaimed by the President."

The PHS Commissioned Corps has also contributed support to more recent military operations of the United States, such as in Vietnam and the Persian Gulf. For example, the PHS organized surgical teams in Vietnam, consisting of both Corps and civilian personnel. PHS staff were also involved in efforts to control malaria and other infectious diseases in Vietnam. The Office of the PHS Historian, however, does not have any information on whether or not the President used his authority to declare the PHS Corps a military service during these conflicts. On July 6, 1988, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Defense signed for the first time a Memorandum of Agreement which established a contingency planning relationship between the departments "for the mobilization and employment of U. S. Public Health Service (USPHS) Commissioned Corps Officers in DoD health care activities."

Prepared by John Parascandola, PHS Historian, September, 2001