Borne announces the "reimbursement of reusable periodic protections"

Ahead of International Women's Day, Elisabeth Borne decided to send out a strong signal

Borne announces the "reimbursement of reusable periodic protections"

Ahead of International Women's Day, Elisabeth Borne decided to send out a strong signal. Reusable periodic protection (washable sanitary napkins, panties and menstrual cups) will be reimbursed from 2024 by Social Security for people under 25, in order to fight against menstrual precariousness, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne announced on Monday.

"We are going to set up reimbursement by Social Security for reusable periodic protection from next year," said Elisabeth Borne on France 5. This will concern "all young women under the age of 25" and the measure will be budgeted for 2024, she added. To be reimbursed, these periodic protections will have to be purchased at a pharmacy, which will be possible "without a prescription", she further specified. “It is unthinkable that women cannot have the protections they need,” commented the Prime Minister.

Another advance: the compositions of the periodic protections are now listed on the packaging since January 1, 2023. Alongside the composition, the precautions for use and the serious adverse effects that the components of the intimate protections can cause appear on the packaging or on a note. The precautions for use mention the importance of hand washing before inserting or removing intimate protection or even the maximum recommended wearing time.

Intimate protection falls into the category of everyday consumer goods in France, unlike in the United States where tampons are listed among medical devices. As a result, no regulations have until now required manufacturers to make the composition of the protections visible or to provide a notice with the contraindications. A parliamentary report in February 2020 recommended the obligation to mention the possible presence of traces of toxic substances on packaging to prevent any risk of "menstrual toxic shock".