There is a precedent for this in the award of the Hong Kong Plague Medal of 1894, which was awarded to civilians and servicemen present at the time. It is very scarce, only a few hundred were awarded to service personnel. It was not permitted to be worn in uniform but I hope that this new medal will be authorised for wear with other medals.
I see that the contract has gone to Worcestershire Medals, which is encouraging. I have always found their products to be of a good standard, unlike those of certain other medallists I could name.