Tennessee lawmakers should ensure every school offers free menstrual products
This is the second year we have had the unique privilege to discuss tampons and pads with Tennessee lawmakers, 83% of whom are men.
However, most lawmakers aren't uncomfortable discussing periods. Many of our majority male legislators have daughters, granddaughters, or sisters, making this a familiar issue.
Not to mention, the primary function of their elected office is to represent the concerns of their constituents on the hill, nearly half of whom menstruate. This is a matter of public responsibility.
Period poverty, or insufficient access to menstrual products, sanitation facilities, and period education, is a reality for women and menstruating people across the country.
For students who come from low-income or under-resourced families, periods often mean missing school. One in four students has stayed home during their period due to lack of access to menstrual products.
Others may use toilet paper, rags, old clothes, or other unhygienic materials during their menstrual cycle.
Fifty percent of teenage students have worn menstrual products longer than recommended, proving the point that it is not just materials that are needed, but education as well.
Conversations with students and teachers across Tennessee reveal two clear truths: students need free period products in schools, and teachers, counselors, and nurses should not have to pay for them.
Yet, many do.
A school counselor in rural East Tennessee, with nearly two decades of experience, told us students have regularly come to her for period products throughout her career − even asking for help in the restroom.
Opinion: I chose to end my pregnancy for health reasons. I had to leave Tennessee to do it
Another teacher working in Metro Nashville Public Schools keeps a stash of pads in their desk, buying boxes out of their own pocket so no student has to go without.
Period poverty isn't just a public health issue − it's a mental health issue. Two-thirds of teens say a lack of period products causes them stress, which means focusing and participating in class is significantly hampered when students are too busy worried about bleeding through their clothes.
Sofiya Patra, a student at an MNPS school, described the shame of being caught unprepared: 'It's embarrassing. It's mortifying,' she said. 'It degrades you. If you've ever been in a situation where it leaks through, it's not something you want to experience in front of anyone.'
For too many students, this isn't just an occasional worry − it's a recurring reality that chips away at their confidence and sense of dignity in the classroom.
No student should have to choose between their education and managing a natural bodily function. Yet, too many do. That's why AWAKE introduced the Menstrual Hygiene Product Accessibility Act (House Bill 39/Senate Bill 155 − to ensure that Tennessee students have access to the basic necessities they need to stay in school and focus on learning.
This bill, sponsored by Rep. Elaine Davis and Sen. Raumesh Akbari, gained significant support in 2024 but failed for lack of funding.
Meanwhile, lawmakers found about $4.8 million to put juveniles through adult criminal courts rather than courts designed for their rehabilitation and nearly $400,000 for law enforcement to surveil and report 'persons not lawfully present' in Tennessee.
This year, we have a real chance to change that. With a significantly lower price tag (about $150,000 compared to $5 million) and growing recognition of the need, lawmakers must act now to pass this bill.
Lawmakers listen when their constituents speak up, so let them know that no student should have to miss class or feel ashamed because they can't afford a pad or tampon.
Kelli Nowers is executive director and Natalie Schilling is policy and advocacy associate at AWAKE Tennessee, which advocates for the systemic advancement of women and young people in Tennessee through education initiatives and policy change.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Free menstrual products benefit Tennessee school students | Opinion
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
2 hours ago
- New York Post
NY state Senate approves doctor-assisted suicide bill, sends it to Hochul's desk for approval
ALBANY – State Senate Democrats passed highly controversial legislation that would allow terminally ill people to take their own lives with the help of doctors in a razor-thin vote Monday — leaving it up to Gov. Kathy Hochul whether to sign it into law. 'This is one of the great social reforms of our state,' state Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal (D-Manhattan), the bill's sponsor in the upper chamber, touted at a press conference earlier in the day Monday — putting the measure on the same tier as the legalization of gay marriage. 'This is about personal autonomy, this is about liberty, this is about exercising one's own freedom to control one's body,' Hoylman-Sigal continued. 3 The 'Medical Aid in Dying Act' passed the state senate Monday evening, meaning it only needs Gov. Kathy Hochul's signature to become law. Vaughn Golden The measure passed 35 to 27, with six Democrats – Senators April Baskin, Siela Bynoe, Cordelle Cleare, Monica Martinez, Roxanne Persaud, and Sam Sutton – voting against it. 'The governor will review the legislation,' a spokesperson for Hochul said. The bill's passage follows a years-long campaign that was fought tooth and nail by a diverse group of critics, including disability rights activists and the Catholic church, as well as many black and Orthodox Jewish communities. 'The Governor still has the opportunity to uphold New York's commitment to suicide prevention, protect vulnerable communities, and affirm that every life—regardless of disability, age, or diagnosis—is worthy of care, dignity, and protection,' The New York Alliance Against Assisted Suicide wrote in a statement following the vote. A Catholic group slammed the bill's passing as 'a dark day for New York' and also called on Hochul to refuse to sign it. 'For the first time in its history, New York is on the verge of authorizing doctors to help their patients commit suicide. Make no mistake – this is only the beginning, and the only person standing between New York and the assisted suicide nightmare unfolding in Canada is Governor Hochul,' Dennis Poust, Executive Director of the New York State Catholic Conference, wrote in a statement. 3 The state Senate voted 35-27 Monday night to legalize physician-assisted suicide for people with terminal illnesses. AP Ahead of the vote, the nearly three-hour debate on the Senate floor got emotional, with several lawmakers holding back tears as they explained their votes. Syracuse-area state Sen. Rachel May (D-Onondaga) shared the story of her late husband, who was receiving morphine in the final stages of his battle with cancer, which he eventually succumbed to at 32 years old. 'I don't know if the last largest dose he took also took his life, but I know that he died in peace,' May said. 'It isn't about controlling the disease or controlling the pain, it's about having control at the end of your life,' she said before voting in favor. Critics fear the legislation lacks critical safeguards over how doctors approve patients looking to receive the prescription for a lethal cocktail of drugs, such as a statutory waiting period, establishing clear chain of custody for the pills, mandating the doctor and recipient meet in-person, and requiring a disclosure that someone indeed used the drugs to take their own life. Under the bill, recipients would need approval from two doctors and a sign-off from two independent witnesses, after which they would receive a prescription for drugs they could use to take their life at a time of their choosing. 3 Gov. Kathy Hochul has not signaled whether she will sign the assisted suicide bill. Lev Radin/ZUMA / Doctors also do not have to conduct a mental health screening for each patient, but may refer a patient for one under the legislation. 'I don't think requesting end-of-life medication when an individual is suffering and in pain and dying suggests a mental health condition, if anything, I think it's quite rational,' Hoylman-Sigal said. Hoylman vowed the bill would not lead to such 'unintended consequences.' 'It was a professional organization that provided us crucial guidance, that helped us develop the state-of-the-art safeguards in this legislation that gave my colleagues and the general public, I believe, the assurance that there will not be unintended consequences,' he said. The legislation is referred to by its supporters as the 'Medical Aid in Dying' bill. 'The option of medical aid in dying provides comfort, allowing those who are dying to live their time more fully and peacefully until the end. I am profoundly grateful to Senate Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins for giving her conference the space to have this important and emotional discussion,' Corinne Carey, Senior Campaign Director of Compassion and Choices, the main group driving the effort to pass the bill, wrote in a statement.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Illinois woman with terminal illness fights for legal right to die
The Brief Debra Robertson, a Lombard woman with terminal cancer, has been advocating for the right to die with dignity. The Illinois General Assembly failed to legalize medical aid in dying during its spring session. Supporters say the bill would provide terminal patients with end-of-life options, while skeptics argue it could allow doctors to violate their oath to "do no harm." LOMBARD, Ill. - Lombard resident Debra Robertson has been fighting for the right to die on her own terms for the last three years. She's been advocating for a bill that was considered but ultimately not passed by state lawmakers, to allow her the option to stop her suffering. The backstory Robertson said she understands why that might be controversial, but she has one request: don't call it suicide. "I get very upset when people talk about this being assisted suicide," Robertson told FOX 32 Chicago. "I'm already dying. I want to die with dignity and I wanna die the way I wanna die." Robertson was diagnosed with an aggressive rare form of cancer in 2022, called neuro-endocrine carcinoma. She was given six months to live. "I think I was just in denial for a while because I couldn't believe that's where I was at, because the doctor said I was gonna die," she said. Three years and four debilitating rounds of treatment later, Robertson said she's out of options and fears she will suffer if not given the option to die via medication. "I know that my death is going to be painful based on the type of cancer I have," she said. Robertson said she's already expressed her wishes to her two children and grandchildren, and they've come to accept her decision. "At first they struggled because they said, 'Granny are you gonna die now? Are you gonna die today?'" Robertson said. "And I said no and I explain to them about what medical aid in dying is and what it means to me and other people, and now they're very supportive of it. They have some sort of a peace." Big picture view Illinois would become the 11th state in the nation to legalize medical aid in dying if the legislation passes. Last month it stalled in the Senate, after some Democrats joined all Republicans in opposition. The sponsor, State Rep. Robyn Gabel (D-Evanston), said the debate was passionate, and lawmakers simply ran out of time. "These complex pieces of legislation need time to make sure we get them right," Gabel said. Under the bill, a patient would need to be diagnosed with a terminal illness and given six months or less to live. They must be evaluated for mental health concerns and get verbal and written approval from two physicians, five days apart. And doctors who prescribe would be immune from any prosecution, unless they coerce a patient, in which case, they would face felony charges. Gabel said the bill is simply about giving terminal patients end-of-life options. "Just because you ask for the medicine doesn't mean you have to take it – 38% don't take it. What they tell me is it gives them peace of mind knowing they can," Gabel said. Downstate Republican Rep. Bill Hauter is also a physician. He said the medical community is split, but believes the bill would allow doctors to violate their Hippocratic oaths that state "first do no harm." "Medicine is a field of healing, taking care of patients and comforting them and trying to solve their issues and not to partake in the act of suicide," Hauter said. Gabel said she believes lawmakers will have the votes to pass the bill next year. Robertson realizes she might not be around to see it, but said she hopes to pave the way for others that are suffering. "I'm dying and I don't have any control over it. The only thing I could have control over is how I die if this was passed," she said. A representative from the Illinois State Medical Association said the organization took an official position to support the bill, but that they "remain a house divided," with physicians advocating passionately on both sides of the issue.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
GOP scores win as Legislature repeals health care for undocumented adults
GOP scores win as Legislature repeals health care for undocumented adults originally appeared on Bring Me The News. Minnesota lawmakers voted Monday to strip MinnesotaCare health insurance from undocumented adults. The measure, which was the most controversial of the legislative session, passed both the House and Senate after leaders reached a budget agreement to avoid a government shutdown. In the evenly-divided House, DFL caucus leader Melissa Hortman was the only Democratic lawmaker to vote for the bill's passage. In the DFL-controlled Senate, Majority Leader Erin Murphy, Sen. Ann Rest, DFL-New Hope and others joined Republicans in voting for the bill. "I cannot vote to shut down our state, I just can't," Rest said in brief remarks on the Senate floor. "I made an agreement, I gave my word," Murphy said shortly before the vote. "I will vote for this. And it's among the most painful votes I've ever taken." The move rolls back a 2023 legislative accomplishment for Democrats, handing a major win to GOP lawmakers who refused a series of offers from DFL leaders and continued to leverage the threat of a government shutdown to get the bill across the finish line. Around 17,000 undocumented adults are currently enrolled in MinnesotaCare, which offers state-subsidized health care plans for low income people who pay premiums in exchange for coverage. The move is expected to save the state $56.9 million in the 2026-27 biennium. Opponents of the bill decried the measure as shameful and several Democratic lawmakers have said the change will cause some undocumented immigrants to die as serious health issues go undetected or untreated. Democrats have also claimed fiscal responsibility is not the motive of the GOP, as the change could drive costs associated with emergency hospital care. This story was originally reported by Bring Me The News on Jun 9, 2025, where it first appeared.
