(Washington, DC) - U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, issued the following statement in response to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) decision to take accountability actions against Board of Veterans Appeals personnel. VA has proposed disciplinary action against three Board Of Veterans’ Appeals Attorneys and filed a complaint against two Board Veterans Law Judges based on an Office of Inspector General investigation that revealed a pattern of inappropriate emails that were racist and sexist in tone.

“Racist and sexist misconduct by VA personnel is reprehensible and repugnant, and I applaud the Deputy Secretary for taking action to hold bad actors accountable. VA must promptly review the appeals these employees handled to ensure that any backward viewpoints did not adversely affect veterans whose cases they reviewed."

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