WASHINGTON, D.C. | Antisemitism and discrimination against Jews and Israelis came under renewed federal scrutiny this week as the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation targeting university boycotts of Israel, the Department of Health and Human Services issued civil-rights guidance for healthcare institutions, and a Senate committee raised concerns about the treatment of Jewish members of the country’s largest teachers’ union.
The three developments, announced Sept. 2 and 3, involve separate areas of federal authority and are at different legal stages. The university legislation must still pass the Senate, the healthcare directive is federal civil-rights guidance, and allegations involving the National Education Association remain under investigation and have not been adjudicated.
Together, however, they demonstrate a widening federal focus on how existing civil-rights and funding rules apply to allegations of antisemitism and discrimination against Jews and Israelis.
House Passes Bill Targeting University Boycotts of Israel
The House voted 237 to 169 on Sept. 3 to approve the Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act, H.R. 4795, legislation designed to restrict federal funding for colleges and universities that participate in certain commercial boycotts of Israel.
The measure attracted some bipartisan support. Thirty-three Democrats joined 203 Republicans and one independent in voting for it, while 167 Democrats and two Republicans voted against it. Twenty-seven representatives did not vote.
The legislation would amend the Higher Education Act to make institutions participating in a “nonexpressive commercial boycott” of Israel ineligible for certain federal funds. It would also require participating institutions to certify that students are not unreasonably obstructed from academic programs in Israel.
Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey and Republican Rep. Virginia Foxx of North Carolina have promoted the measure as a response to the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel. Gottheimer’s office said the legislation is intended to prevent institutions receiving federal student aid from engaging in commercial and academic boycotts targeting Israel.
Reuters reported that opponents raised First Amendment concerns. Democratic Rep. Jerrold Nadler of New York, who opposes BDS, argued that the legislation could nevertheless infringe freedom of expression. Supporters contend the measure addresses discriminatory institutional conduct rather than protected academic speech.
The bill is not law. It must pass the Senate before it can be sent to the president.
HHS Warns Healthcare Institutions About Antisemitic Discrimination
In a separate action Sept. 3, the Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights issued a “Dear Colleague” letter explaining how federal civil-rights protections apply to discrimination rooted in antisemitism in federally funded healthcare, medical education, clinical training and research.
The guidance applies primarily through Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act.
HHS said antisemitic conduct may violate federal law when discrimination is based on protected characteristics, including actual or perceived Jewish ancestry or ethnic characteristics, Israeli national origin, or another protected ground.
“Antisemitic discrimination has no place in our nation’s healthcare system,” HHS Office for Civil Rights Director Paula M. Stannard said.
“Jewish and Israeli patients, students, and healthcare professionals are entitled to equal access and individualized treatment without discrimination on a protected basis.”
The guidance identifies several potential forms of prohibited discrimination.
Federally funded healthcare providers may not deny, delay, segregate, or otherwise provide different treatment because of a person’s actual or perceived Jewish ancestry or ethnicity or Israeli national origin. Medical schools and clinical-training programs receiving HHS funding are similarly prohibited from discriminating in areas including admissions, residencies, clerkships and research opportunities.
Harassment can also violate federal law when it denies or limits equal access to a covered program or benefit based on protected status. HHS said institutions may face compliance problems because of their own conduct or because of a legally inadequate response to known harassment by others.
Retaliating against someone for reporting discrimination or participating in an Office for Civil Rights investigation is also prohibited.
The guidance does not create a blanket federal prohibition on every offensive or antisemitic statement. Rather, it explains circumstances in which conduct connected to antisemitism can trigger existing federal civil-rights protections.
Senate Report Examines Treatment of Jewish NEA Members
A third development concerns the National Education Association, the largest teachers’ union in the United States.
A report released Sept. 2 by the Republican-led Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions identified what it called a “distinct and serious concern” regarding the NEA’s treatment of Jewish members.
The allegations include claims from Jewish members that they experienced harassment, ostracism and intimidation, along with concerns about educational materials dealing with Israel, Jews and the Holocaust.
The committee report is a congressional assessment, not a judicial determination that the NEA violated federal law.
Some of the underlying allegations are separately being examined by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
The EEOC opened an investigation earlier this year following a complaint filed by the Louis D. Brandeis Center’s Coalition to Combat Antisemitism alleging that the union created a hostile environment for current and former Jewish members.
Among the allegations reported when the investigation was announced were claims of harassment and physical intimidation at the union’s 2025 annual convention. The complaint also challenged NEA materials that allegedly failed to identify Jews as the primary victims of the Holocaust and used a map labelled “Palestine” in place of Israel.
The NEA previously said it takes such concerns seriously and was reviewing the matter through its established processes.
The EEOC investigation does not itself establish wrongdoing. The allegations have not been adjudicated, and an investigation can conclude without a finding that federal law was violated.
The Senate committee also acknowledged that the NEA had taken some corrective measures, while arguing that stronger safeguards were necessary.
Federal Scrutiny Expands Beyond College Campuses
The developments reflect the expansion of the U.S. government’s response to antisemitism beyond the university protests that have dominated much of the public debate since the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack against Israel.
Federal scrutiny now encompasses healthcare, professional training, labour organizations and institutional participation in boycotts of Israel.
The legal mechanisms are different in each case.
If enacted, the Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act would impose conditions on certain federal education funding. The HHS directive explains how existing civil-rights statutes apply to federally funded health programs. The NEA matter involves congressional oversight and a separate employment-discrimination investigation.
The House legislation also exposes an unresolved dispute over where anti-discrimination policy ends and constitutionally protected political expression begins.
Supporters argue that universities receiving federal money should not participate institutionally in discriminatory boycotts targeting Israel or obstruct academic relationships involving Israelis.
Opponents argue that even if BDS is objectionable, federal restrictions tied to Israel boycotts risk interfering with protected political expression. Reuters reported that Nadler made that distinction in opposing the bill despite his own opposition to BDS.
The next steps will differ for each development.
The House bill now requires Senate action. HHS-funded institutions are being put on notice about their obligations under existing civil-rights statutes. The allegations involving Jewish NEA members remain subject to the EEOC investigation, with no final finding of liability.
What connects the three developments is the federal government’s increasing examination of whether Jewish and Israeli Americans are receiving equal treatment in institutions that receive federal money or operate under federal civil-rights protections.
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