I have long argued that the MoH, while recognizing great heroism, is not given to the recipient for that heroism. Instead, it is to him, his family, his town, his State and the United States as a whole.
As such, it designates him as the conveyor of the Medal of Honor, that for the rest of his life, it is his status. There is no higher honor, and even if he is elected President of the United States, his title will still be “Medal of Honor Recipient and President of the United States.”
There is no military regulation that higher ranking military personnel must salute a Medal of Honor Recipient first, but from private to highest ranking flag officer, they will.
That there was a combat action that brought about the presentation of the Medal of Honor, is just a discriminator of its issuance. After then, the recipient wears the MoH so that his fellow citizens will be able to see heroism personified.
There are now fewer than one living MoH recipient for every 3 million Americans, with fewer ever year. If you ever have a chance to meet one, take it.
I believe we have just as many hero's today as at any time in our history and no reason to squeeze the numbers for any reason.