Opinion: Let's talk about period costs

The price of sanitary products is a struggle for some. PHOTO/GETTY IMAGES

​Periods. Pads. Tampons. Have I lost you yet?

It seems for some the topic is an uncomfortable one not suitable for public discussion. Which is, quite frankly, ridiculous.

For around 50 per cent of the population menstruation is a fact of life. So why the awkward squirming when legitimate questions surrounding it come up?

This week government funding body Pharmac revealed it is considering an application to fund women's hygiene products, such as pads and tampons.

Pharmac's chief executive has acknowledged there is a "fairly substantial amount of money going on women's product" in some families, and some were turning to rags, old clothing and tea towels as alternatives.

In Rotorua, a school nurse has spoken of having to dip into her own budget to buy the products for students whose parents can't afford them, while other girls simply don't come to school while menstruating.

No, New Zealand is not a Third World country. This is not the 1900s. For teenage girls to be missing out on education each month because they have their period, that is a cause for shame.

The application has merit but even more importantly, it has brought the issue front and centre. Even if it doesn't fall within Pharmac's realm for funding, how about subsidies or at least removing the GST on the products?

For most women the extra monthly cost on the grocery bill is not going to break the bank.

But what about those whose periods last longer than a few days; a week, two weeks, longer.

Should they have to suffer financially because of the way their body works? Or girls in families where every last dollar is carefully budgeted, where even a few dollars on a pack of budget pads may mean a fewer loaves of bread for the family that week?

The issue has prompted much debate on social media, with many asking if it would be different if it was men who got periods.

An interesting question, indeed.