By Arin Loeffelholz
A new law is bringing much-needed change to smaller schools by providing free menstrual products to bathrooms throughout the school. This step aims to ensure that no student has to miss class because of something as natural as a period. It’s a win for access, giving every student the support they deserve.
Since smaller schools like Louisville Public Schools tend to have more students on Medicare and Medicaid, it is likely (or at least more likely) that bill LB1284 will affect LPS directly. This means that students will have more access to menstrual products and resources in their restrooms, not just in the nurse’s office.
In the 2025-26 school year, the bill will be enacted. This bill does many things, as listed from the Nebraska Legislature. This bill was passed on April 11th, 2024.
There are many qualifications a school can meet to qualify for a large part of this bill, but one of the main parts is the pilot bill for providing menstrual products in public schools. Previously, in 2023, the Menstrual Equity for All Act was passed by Congress. According to Congress, "This bill expands access to menstrual products through federal programs, in certain locations, and for particular groups. It also prohibits states and localities from taxing retail sales of a range of menstrual products (e.g., sanitary napkins, tampons, and menstrual cups)...Further, the bill (1) establishes a grant program to support the provision of free sanitary napkins and tampons on campuses of institutions of higher education, and (2) permits elementary and secondary schools to use certain grants to provide sanitary napkins and tampons to students.” In School nurse, Johnna Ham, she provided more context on what this looks like. She said, “There are a lot of families in the community that are considered low income and have government insurance, like Medicaid, and because we have a certain percentage of students who are receiving Medicaid, we can apply for a grant for the federal government to provide us free menstrual products.”
The current bill only provides that the nurse’s office with/to hold these products, whereas the new bill was recently passed as part of a larger education bill, LB1284, and will allow schools that qualify to provide them in bathrooms, free of charge. This pilot bill is also a study, and it will increase education on how much funding and products will be needed to support these schools. Schools are considered a “menstrual desert” which essentially means a place where it is hard to access menstrual products as said by Cassidy Bell from the Menstrual Equity Coalition.
This new bill is a large step in increasing menstrual product access, especially in schools like LPS. By providing free access to menstrual products in the bathrooms, this bill ensures students can focus on their education without unnecessary barriers by making convenience and accessibility possible as well as serving as a pilot to gather information for better and broader implementation.