Columbia Health reinstates free tampon and pad program after receiving backlash
On Sunday, September 11, a student council representative announced that Columbia Health’s free tampon and pad distribution program had been shut down. By the following Sunday, the program had been rebooted.
Throughout last year, the Columbia College Student Council and the Engineering Student Council lobbied for a free tampon and pad service, as requested by members of the Columbia community. Last March, Columbia Health — Columbia’s equivalent of Penn’s Student Health Service — launched the service and distributed 200 pads and 635 tampons to 137 students between March 21 and the end of the spring semester, the Columbia Spectator reported. Campus Services ended the program due to their assessment that there was not enough patronage to justify continuance.
During the following week, CCSC President Nicole Allicock, CCSC Vice President of Policy Abby Porter, and ESC President Neha Jain met with Campus Services to advocate for the reinstatement of the program, the Spectator wrote. While the CCS and the ESC found the negotiations to be initially successful, according to the Spectator, the CCSC is continuing to push for an expansion of the program into on-campus restrooms and residence halls.
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