Senator Patricia Jehlen was elected to the Massachusetts Senate in 2005. She represents Medford, Somerville, and parts of Winchester and Cambridge.Senator Jehlen serves as Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development, Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Elder Affairs, and as Vice Chair of the Joint Committee on Marijuana Policy. Senator Jehlen also serves on the Committees on Ways and Means, Revenue, and Community Development and Small Businesses.
Inspired by movements in schools both in her district and around Massachusetts, Senator Jehlen filed this bill to make menstrual products available in schools, prisons, and homeless shelters free of charge. The bill is a priority for MassNOW and the Commission on the Status of Women.