Advocates hope House follows Senate’s lead in passing menstrual equity bills

Advocates in Massachusetts want menstrual products to be as easy to find in public places as toilet paper. After years of stalled attempts, they remain optimistic about ending what they call “period poverty,” or limited access to menstrual products.

On Oct. 16, the state Senate unanimously approved two bills: An Act to Increase Access to Menstrual Products, or “I AM,” which would require free products in schools, shelters and correctional facilities, and a companion bill mandating transparent ingredient lists on menstrual product packaging. 

Now, all eyes are on the House, where similar legislation has died in past sessions. 

“I think it would have a big impact across the entire state … particularly in communities where income is a challenge to provide access to these products for free,” said co-sponsor and New Bedford Rep. Mark Sylvia.

The “I AM” measure has been recommended to pass by the House Committee on Health Care Financing, and is now awaiting review by House Ways and Means. No version of the measure has been recommended to pass in past sessions. The bill’s progress is a good sign, Sylvia said.

Another bill, which would extend menstrual product access to all state buildings, including colleges and universities, landed in the House Ways and Means Committee after a vote in November. The ingredient disclosure bill also awaits review by House Ways and Means — a common dead end for legislation. 

Advocacy groups like the Massachusetts chapter of the National Organization for Women, YWCA Southeastern Massachusetts and Hope and Comfort Hygiene Hub, have been filling the gap by providing donated products to public facilities like shelters and libraries — places that would be included in the “I AM” bill. They have seen positive impacts, but said the need remains high.

“Poverty has already been an issue, homelessness has already been an issue, and we know those are proxies for people experiencing period poverty as well,” said Sasha Goodfriend, executive director of Mass NOW. 

In Massachusetts, one in nine women and girls of average menstruating age lives below the federal poverty level, according to a 2022 survey by the Alliance for Period Supplies. With less money for food, household budgets for covering basic necessities like pads and tampons are even smaller. (Massachusetts exempts period products from sales tax — a decision made more than a decade ago.)

New Bedford Public Schools and the county jail provide free menstrual products, but the state lags behind others that require them in public buildings. 

Advocates say the issue could have been solved long before now.

“I’ve been working on this bill for six years,” said Leimary Llopiz, advocacy coordinator at YWCA. “How come I’m still working on this bill and people still don’t understand that this is so important?”

Without healthy options, people who menstruate often resort to unhygienic alternatives that could be detrimental to their health, Goodfriend said. 

Even some sanitary choices contain toxins like heavy metals. The ingredient transparency bill aims to further reduce those risks by requiring clear labeling and timely updates when ingredients change. A violation could result in a $1,000 fine per offense.

“That can create more reproductive health problems that are even more costly to the state and to the individual,” said Goodfriend. “We’ve heard from doctors who have had to perform hysterectomies on people that wouldn’t have needed to have them otherwise.”

Potential barriers to “I AM” passage

If these bills have seen unanimous Senate approval, what is causing them to consistently stall in the House? Sylvia and Llopiz said menstruation remains an uncomfortable topic for many. 

“It’s not just about the convenience of them,” Sylvia said of basic health products. “If you don’t have access to them, you won’t go to school, you won’t go to a meeting, you won’t go to an interview, you won’t participate.”

More than half of surveyed school nurses in the state reported that they had seen students miss class to obtain menstrual products, according to a 2019 study by the Massachusetts Menstrual Equity Coalition. 

Rep. Carole Fiola of Fall River said the success of nonprofits like Mass NOW and Dignity Matters may make the issue seem less urgent.

“I don’t hear from constituents, possibly, because that is something that a lot of educational and other institutions are covering,” Fiola said. Still, she considers it a priority.

Neither the Senate nor House bills include a plan for financing the new requirements, a potential barrier to their passage. Sylvia said that could be one of the reasons why Health Care Finance reviewed it.

Funding mechanisms are largely undecided, said Rep. Christopher Markey of Westport, a member of the House Health Care Finance Committee. Some school districts that provide free access to menstrual products have found funding within their own budgets and through partnerships with community organizations. 

State revenue could be used towards providing free menstrual products, but the formula is undecided, said Markey. For the bill to pass in the House, there must be a clear outline of the exact cost for agencies and a sustainable guideline for funding, he said.

“Period products are costly and I think the government has a lot of competing demands for finances,” said Alison LeBlanc, vice president of development for Hope and Comfort. “I can understand the hesitancy about adding another line item of things that the state is paying for, however … it’s an equity issue that needs to be addressed.”

LeBlanc said Hope and Comfort currently works with 600 partners statewide, with nearly 400 more on a waitlist. The group buys products in bulk, which reduces the cost, but not enough to meet the need.

“It’s been almost impossible to keep up with demand,” LeBlanc said. “Sometimes we have a hard time getting donations at the level we need, because people just aren’t aware that this is a problem in Massachusetts.” 

Still, LeBlanc says she’s optimistic about the bills’ chances this time. 

“It has felt different this year,” LeBlanc said. “I don’t know where we’ll end up, but I do remain hopeful.”

Isabelle Oss is a graduate student in journalism at Boston University, covering state government for The Light as part of the Boston University Statehouse Program.