 Altogether , McCain was held as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam for five and a half years , nearly five of them after his refusal to accept the out @-@ of @-@ sequence repatriation offer . His wartime injuries left him permanently incapable of raising either arm more than 80 degrees . For his actions as a POW , McCain was awarded the Silver Star , the Legion of Merit , three more instances of the Bronze Star , another instance of the Navy Commendation Medal , and the Purple Heart . He also gained an appreciation , from experiencing the mutual help and organized resistance of the POWs , that his earlier individualism needed to be tempered by a belief in causes greater than self @-@ interest . 
