The United States Navy agreed on Wednesday to amend the records of sailors and SEALs who were discharged or otherwise punished for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine on religious grounds. The updated files, which must be corrected within a year, will also make discharged personnel eligible for reenlistment.
According to the terms of a settlement reached by the Navy and a group of former sailors on Wednesday:
Defendants agree to re-review the personnel records of all class members to ensure that the U.S. Navy has permanently removed records indicating administrative separation processing or proceedings, formal counseling, and non-judicial punishment actions taken against the class members solely on the basis of non-compliance with the COVID-19 vaccine mandate and adverse information related to non-compliance with the COVID-19 vaccine mandate.
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Some 4,339 individuals are affected by this settlement.
“This has been a long and difficult journey, but the Navy SEALs never gave up,” Danielle Runyan, senior counsel for the suit, said in a statement. “We are thrilled that those members of the Navy who were guided by their conscience and steadfast in their faith will not be penalized in their Navy careers.”
Connor Walcott is a staff writer for Valuetainment.com. Follow Connor on X and look for him on VT’s “The Unusual Suspects.”
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