Access to Feminine Hygiene Products and Healthcare

Overview

Female inmates need more medical care, including prenatal and gynecological attention, that male inmates don’t need. They require separate showers and toilet facilities, as well as different clothing and hygiene products. For example, women must have the appropriate healthcare products for their monthly menstrual cycle. Women do not have a choice or control over their menstrual cycles and therefore should not be required to pay for menstrual products to ensure their health and respect their dignity. When women are unable to afford menstrual products during incarceration, they are forced to resort to alternative methods that are both dehumanizing and unsanitary.

Washington, D.C. – At the winter meeting of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), ALEC’s Criminal Justice Task Force adopted landmark model legislation on incarcerated women. The “Dignity for Incarcerated Women” model bill is intended to provide a template for every state legislature to improve policies for women behind bars. This key effort was sponsored by the American Conservative Union Foundation (ACUF), along with key ALEC members, Rep. Bernie Satrom (R-ND) and Rep. Kim Moser (R-KY). This is anACT regarding the care of state incarcerated pregnant women, family visitation rights, the access male correctional officers have in correctional facilities where a female inmate may be in a state of undress, access to feminine hygiene products in correctional facilities, and the education and training of employees of correctional facilities in which female inmates are housed. The full text can be found here.