The Health Divide: For many women in prison, period products are out of reach
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Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
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January 26, 2026
Imagine being a woman in prison without enough money on your books to buy menstrual products.
That’s a harsh reality for hundreds of poor women each month who are incarcerated in U.S. prisons. Women who lack funds in their commissary accounts to purchase menstrual products are forced to improvise during their periods.
For those facing “period poverty,” makeshift solutions include tearing fabric from T-shirts, sheets, or mattress covers to make homemade pads. Some stuff their underwear with toilet paper, while others reuse pads or wear sanitary products longer than recommended.
These improvised methods can pose serious health risks, including urinary tract infections (UTIs) and even toxic shock syndrome.
Currently, 24 states and D.C. mandate that free menstrual products be provided to incarcerated women. Meanwhile, the female prison population has risen by over 600% from 1980 to 2023. Among the 190,600 women and girls locked up, many come from low-income backgrounds, earning less than $22,500 per year before their incarceration, which contributes to cycles of “period poverty.”
Lawmakers have moved slowly to address the issue of menstrual product accessibility, due in part to the stigma surrounding menstruation. Consequently, prisons, jails, juvenile facilities, and immigration centers that house women and girls have not sufficiently provided free menstrual products, which are essential for their health and hygiene.
“Nearly every state has a rule on the books about providing menstrual products, but the specifics, implementation and enforcement vary widely,” Stateline’s Amanda Watford reported last month. “Advocates say that leaves many incarcerated people without the consistent access they need.”
Wisconsin state Rep. Robyn Vining, a Democrat, authored Assembly Bill 736, a bipartisan measure that would require Wisconsin prisons to provide free menstrual products to their 1,500 female inmates. "Our institutions, policies, and programs were not designed to safely and humanely incarcerate women," Vining said.
One-third of all women will face period poverty
Access to menstrual products is not only a challenge for incarcerated people; it’s also a problem for women and girls outside prison.
Over one-third of American women experience period poverty at some point in their lives. The numbers are even higher for women of color: Nearly 47% of Black women and 37% of Hispanic women have reported experiencing period poverty. Half of respondents said they missed work, and one in four girls said they missed school, because they didn’t have period supplies.
Some states have come up with creative ways to ensure women and girls have access to these supplies. In Utah, public school bathrooms (female and unisex) are required to provide free period products. In Colorado, free menstrual products are provided to middle and high school students after a 2024 survey reported that 90% of teen girlsstarted their menstrual cycle unexpectedly at school or during a school-related activity and lacked access to period products.
Advocates and formerly incarcerated women said some women reported being pressured to trade favors, labor, food, or even sex for pads or tampons. A 2014 federal investigation of Alabama’s only women’s prison, for example, found that period products, laundry, and clean uniforms were “severely limited,” and that staff used these supplies to coerce, exploit, and punish incarcerated people, according to the findings.
Other reports highlight how women were subjected to assault, withholding of supplies, and humiliation while menstruating, in addition to being forced to live in unsanitary and unsafe conditions.
LaTonya Johnson, a Democratic state senator in Wisconsin, said the legislation aims to establish a clear, statewide standard.
“Right now, access to basic hygiene in our correctional system depends on where someone is held and whether they can afford facility-sold personal care items on wages that amount to pennies an hour. When people cannot afford soap, deodorant, or menstrual products, they are forced to ration, go without,” she said.
Coverage of this topic can spark change
In 2023, Center for Health Journalism National Fellow Annabel Rocha examined community-driven solutions for menstrual equality in Chicago’s Latino neighborhoods. She created a survey to gather information on what people of color, low-income, and unhoused women face.
She discovered that period poverty is not only about the lack of access to menstrual products but also the lack of access to safe private spaces, disposal bins, and education.
Period poverty is likely to worsen as the prices of essential goods continue to rise. There are many important stories to share regarding this topic.
What is your state's stance on providing free menstrual products in prisons and jails? Are there legislators willing to write legislation on the issue? To date, 27 states and D.C. have passed legislation requiring schools to provide free period products.
Does your public school system supply free menstrual products? Some cities have vending machines that dispense free harm-reduction supplies, such as fentanyl test strips or gun locks. Do they also include pads and tampons in similar machines?
Only three states have laws requiring free menstrual products in homeless shelters. Is this something that’s being addressed in your community?
As health journalists, stories on this topic have the potential to drive rapid change on an overlooked health disparity.