For many women, getting a period for 3 to 8 days every month can be hellish — everything from bleeding, cramps, and fatigue to the humiliating march to the local store for tampons and pads.

But these women are incredibly lucky compared to thousands of marginalized Americans who lack adequate access to these products so fundamental to women’s reproductive health.

In particular, women in prison face an uphill battle getting their hands on feminine hygiene products. Incarcerated people earn at most 75 cents a day, which has to be split between basic necessities like toothpaste and deodorant.

In prison, costs range from $2.63 for 24 pads to over $4 for eight tampons. That means giving up more than three days of wages for pads and nearly twice that much for tampons.

Most inmates simply can’t afford it, and lack of access to menstrual supplies creates toxic choices for women.

Prisoners frequently either go without supplies, bleeding onto clothes they’re then stuck with until the next laundry day, or end up using one tampon or pad for multiple days. Wearing an individual tampon or pad for more than the recommended maximum of eight hours increases the risk of bacterial or fungal infection as […]