Gotham Gazette

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tampon tax

tampon tax

  • Time to Say and Do More for Women's Health

    Eric Adams Brooklyn women's health

    Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams


    Tampons. Periods. Breastfeeding. Hot flashes.

    These terms, and others relevant to women’s health, have traditionally been considered taboo — inappropriate for polite conversation and therefore left unmentioned. That silence has had serious consequences for women and girls, who are denied access to feminine hygiene products, charged more at the cash register for “women’s” versions of household items, and made to feel ashamed about their bodies.

    This taboo extends to sexual health, with terrible costs for young

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  • Council to Hear Bills on Providing Tampons at Shelters, Prisons & Schools

    Gibson Ferreras-Copeland Mark-Viverito hearing

    Council Members Gibson, Ferreras-Copeland, Mark-Viverito (l-r) (photo: William Alatriste)


    The City Council is about to take the next step toward making feminine hygiene products readily available, and free, in New York City public schools, shelters, and correctional facilities. On Thursday, June 2, the Council’s Committee on Women’s Issues will hold its first hearing on a package of bills to ...

  • Sponsor Says Deal Reached to Eliminate 'Tampon Tax'

    linda rosenthal julissa ferreras copeland

    Assembly Member Rosenthal, right, and Council Member Ferreras-Copeland (photo)


    A difference of a few words is all that stands in the way of New York State becoming the sixth in the nation to exempt feminine hygiene products from state sales tax, though that could soon change. The Assembly sponsor of the bill, Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal, told Gotham Gazette on Thursday that she and state Senator Sue Serino, the Senate

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