On Monday, September 29, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has referred Harvard University for an administrative suspension and disqualification process. This could mean a ban on Harvard from receiving all government agency contracts or federal funding.
Director of the Office for Civil Rights at the Department of Health and Human Services, Paula M. Stannard said, “The Office for Civil Rights has formally initiated administrative proceedings against Harvard University, reflecting the Office’s commitment to safeguarding taxpayer investments and the public interest.”
On October 7, 2023, the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas attacked Israel, leading to protests in support of Palestine at several US universities including Harvard, triggering complaints of discrimination, threats, and hostile environments against Jewish and Israeli students.
In February 2025, the HHS OCR initiated a compliance review of Harvard Medical School following incidents of anti-Semitic events at the 2024 graduation ceremony. In April, the investigation expanded to all institutions under Harvard.
The Trump administration linked university funding to anti-discrimination compliance, gradually freezing federal grants to Harvard University. This aligns with the 2023 Supreme Court case “Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard,” which expanded to include investigations into anti-Jewish discrimination.
As an Ivy League institution, Harvard receives billions of dollars in funding annually from the federal government, such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under the HHS, receiving over $794 million in federal funding from 2023 to 2025.
On June 30, 2025, the HHS OCR concluded that Harvard violated the 1964 Civil Rights Act Title VI by discriminating against Jewish/Israeli students. Subsequently, the Department of Health notified Harvard and referred the case to the accrediting agency, the New England Commission of Higher Education.
On September 29, the OCR officially referred Harvard for disqualification, recommending that government agencies exclude Harvard from signing administrative contracts and disqualify Harvard from applying for federal funding.
Just over a week ago, the $46 million in federal funding from the National Institutes of Health that had been frozen by the Health Department and intended for Harvard was once again allocated to the Ivy League institution. Previously, a district judge ruled earlier this month that the Trump administration’s suspension of funding was unlawful.