WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) issued the following statement in response to new guidelines issued by the Federal Bureau of Prisons explicitly requiring all BOP facilities to provide incarcerated women access to feminine hygiene products, including tampons and pads, at no cost to inmates.
The BOP had previously only broadly required “sanitary products” to be made available for free, and the specific type of products available at no cost at different BOP facilities varied.
“I’m encouraged that the Bureau of Prisons is finally explicitly requiring these health care products be provided free of charge to incarcerated women at all BOP facilities. But a policy memo is just words on a piece of paper unless it’s properly enforced. I’ll be monitoring to ensure that BOP is implementing this new policy consistently at all federal prisons. I’ll also be working to advance other important reforms included in the Dignity for Incarcerated Women Act.”
Booker and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) are the lead Senate sponsors of the Dignity for Incarcerated Women Act, a landmark bill to reform the way women are treated behind bars. One of the reforms included in the legislation was a requirement that BOP provide certain health products, such as tampons and pads, free of charge to incarcerated people. Sens. Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Kamala Harris (D-CA) are cosponsors of the legislation.
