I'm not dead yet! Once something is thawed, whatever degree of bacteria that grew is the degree that it would have when it was re-frozen. If it was done shortly afterward...I've never had a problem. They are full of nitrates and wouldn't go bad as quickly as fresh meat.
As far as safety, I'd say it depends on how long they sat in the hot water & how much bacteria collected in that time. If it were me, I'd only risk it if they were defrosted for less than an hour, & they probably won't taste the same anyway. They may have freezer burn after refreezing.
My mom worked in the main office of Safeway in the meat department back in the 80's & answered questions from people calling about refreezing meat all the time. It's not true that once meat has been defrosted that it can't be refrozen. It usually can IF it hasn't been defrosted for very long.
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