Maryland bill would combat menstrual inequities

Maryland health departments and social service agencies would distribute free menstrual hygiene products to low-income households should a bill in the state Legislature pass this session. Saara Khan, a 13-year-old activist, brought this bill forward in hopes that it will combat menstruation inequities. “We don’t choose to have periods, so why should women be burdened unnecessarily with the outrageous costs of period supplies,” Khan testified in a House committee hearing Tuesday. HB757 mandates all local health departments and community action agencies give out menstrual hygiene products at no cost to all women enrolled in Medicaid and low-income households.