ICE Denies Women in Custody Pads and Tampons, Forcing Them to Bleed or Improvise Using Toilet Papers and Rags

Female and transgender detainees are left without enough pads and tampons, forcing some to use toilet paper, rags and mattress filling, a federal watchdog has found.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigation reveals detainees in US immigration centres receive as few as 12 pads per month. The average menstruating person needs 3-6 products per day over a seven-day cycle.

Some women reported bleeding through their clothes. Others described using multiple low-quality pads at once to prevent leakage.

The GAO's investigation, prompted by members of Congress, examined both the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities, exposing inconsistent provisions and weak oversight.

In some facilities, the mandated range of menstrual products was not available in common areas, leaving detainees to cope under humiliating conditions.

Federal Prisons Mandated to Give Free Menstrual Products

The First Step Act of 2018 requires federal prisons to provide free menstrual products in sufficient quantities and to keep them accessible at all times. In ICE facilities, however, the rules are fragmented.

Facilities are guided by one of three detention standards, which differ in specificity. Some explicitly require free products; others leave the provision vague or optional.

According to the GAO, this leaves inspectors unable to ensure compliance or detect gaps in care.

ICE told the GAO that its standards were intended for 'flexibility' rather than rigid enforcement, a position experts describe as dangerously permissive.

Congresswoman Grace Meng, who requested the investigation, framed the issue starkly: 'Menstrual products aren't a luxury, they are a basic need for half of the population', she said, as noted by Her Choice Org. Her office emphasised recent reports of women in detention being forced to sit in blood-soaked clothing, a vivid illustration of the human cost behind bureaucratic language and neglect.

The Human Toll of Neglect

Accounts from formerly detained women who went through several menstruations paint a grim picture.

Some reported receiving as few as 12–20 low-quality pads or tampons per month, which is far below the average need of three to six products per day for a seven-day cycle.

One woman described prison pads as 'not much more than a panty liner', forcing her to use multiple at once to prevent leakage. Miriam Vishniac, founder of the Prison Flow Project, emphasised the stakes: improvised solutions risk infection and create conditions for abuse.

'When you do not document these procedures, menstruators in confinement are left at the mercy of their captors', she said.

Oversight Failures and Recommendations

GAO investigators conducted site visits to five BOP institutions and three ICE facilities, surveyed officials across 29 BOP and 52 ICE locations, and interviewed staff and detainees.

Their findings were sobering: while BOP generally provided products, inspections did not systematically detect non-compliance, and some prisons failed to replenish items within the 24-hour window required by policy.

ICE fared worse. Without precise standards, oversight mechanisms could not verify equitable access or ensure timely delivery.

The GAO recommended that BOP strengthen oversight and that ICE clarify requirements for menstrual products. BOP agreed to implement the recommendations, but ICE declined, citing operational flexibility. Experts warn that without enforceable standards, detainees will continue to suffer under an uneven patchwork of access.

This issue goes beyond policy; it is a question of dignity. Women and transgender people behind bars cannot control when they bleed, yet federal agencies control whether they have the basic tools to manage it safely.

As GAO investigators note, failing to provide menstrual care consistently undermines both health and human rights. Despite decades of laws mandating access, the lived reality for many in detention is humiliation and avoidable suffering.

What Happens Next

The watchdog recommended that the Bureau of Prisons strengthen oversight and improve compliance checks. The Bureau agreed to implement the recommendations.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement declined to adopt the proposed reforms, maintaining that flexibility was necessary for operations. The watchdog warned that without clearer standards, detainees will continue to face uneven access to basic menstrual care.