New York Wants You to Know What's in Your Tampons

From Harper's BAZAAR

• New York will be the first state that mandates the disclosure of ingredients used to make menstrual products on the packages or boxes that they are sold in.

• The law will take effect in 180 days after it was signed on Friday, October 11, and manufacturers will have 18 months to develop new packaging or labels that disclose the ingredients.

• Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the legislation last week.

What's in a tampon? New York will attempt to answer that question with the passage of a new law requiring manufacturers to disclose the ingredients of tampons and pads on the packages they are sold in, making the state the first in the nation to do so.

The legislation will take effect in 180 days after it was signed on October 11, while manufacturers will have up to 18 months to develop the according packaging or labels.

Governor Andrew Cuomo, who signed the law last Friday, said in a statement, "Practically every product on the market today is required to list its ingredients, yet these items have inexplicably evaded this basic consumer protection. It's part of the pervasive culture of inequality in our society that has gone on for too long, and that injustice ends today as we become the first state in the nation to mandate ingredient disclosure and empower women to make their own decisions about what goes into their bodies."

The original bill, as introduced by Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal last year, requires manufacturers to disclose the ingredient percentages, as well as any chemicals or chemical by-products in tampons, sanitary napkins, menstrual cups, and period underwear. The bill also called for labels on single-use dispensers.

Last year, Rosenthal partnered with nonprofit advocacy group Women’s Voices for the Earth to test the ingredients of tampons made by six popular U.S. brands. The results revealed the presence of volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds, including carbon disulfide, a compound known to be associated with reproductivity risks.

"It is important to note that there is no available research on potential health impacts from vaginal exposure to these chemicals," the study said. "These results confirm neither a known level of danger, nor do they establish a threshold of safety for these exposures."

Currently, tampons are categorized as medical devices by the Food and Drug Administration, meaning that manufacturers are not federally required to disclose the products' ingredients on the packaging. Even so, menstrual products don't hit the market until the FDA clears them for safety and effectiveness, according to Today.

The call for transparency in ingredient labeling is part of a larger battle for menstrual equity, a concept demanding that safe menstrual products be made affordable and accessible to everyone who needs them. Advocates have also previously rallied to end the taxation of menstrual products. In many states, tampons and pads are not classified as a health care necessity and are subsequently not exempt from a sales tax. Opponents of the tax argue that this enforces gender-based price discrimination, since most women rely on such products for a significant portion of their lives.

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