During the coronavirus pandemic, you’ve likely noticed that many essential items have been hard to get your hands on. This doesn’t only apply to disinfectant wipes and toilet paper, but also menstrual care products like pads and tampons. This shortage was felt the most by women who suffer from fibroids – noncancerous tumors in the uterine wall that commonly cause heavy bleeding.
To make matters worse, women who were planning to have procedures done to remove uterine fibroids are currently stuck in limbo, as non-life saving surgeries have been paused due to COVID-19.
To ensure all women awaiting treatment have the supplies they need, Black-owned feminine care brand The Honey Pot Company and Acessa Health, a company innovating minimally invasive fibroid removal solutions, are partnering up to get menstrual products to women affected by the shortage. Linda Ripoll, CMO and co-founder of The Honey Pot Company said in a statement provided to ESSENCE, “as many of The Honey Pot Company’s customers have fibroids and seek better alternatives than the traditional hysterectomy by opting for Acessa’s non-invasive fibroid treatment, we want to help those whose procedures have been put on hold.”
The women-led companies are not only filling a temporary need, but overall hope to address the socioeconomic inequities in feminine care that seem to be hitting Black women the hardest. Studies show that Black women are three times more likely than women of other races to get uterine fibroids in their lifetime. This condition not only causes heavy bleeding but long, painful periods and, in severe cases, infertility. Research conducted for Acessa’s “Making Women’s Health Healthy” campaign created by purpose-driven agency OBERLAND found that 70 percent of women are impacted by fibroids, and 80 percent of them are women of color.
“Women with fibroids often suffer in silence and the tampon shortage is yet another dagger for women who are seeking relief,” said Acessa Health President, CEO, and Co-Founder Kim Rodriquez. “By partnering with The Honey Pot Company, we’re living up to our ethos of making women’s health healthier and putting ‘health on her terms.’ “
ESSENCE readers who suffer from fibroids and are in need of menstrual products can simply click here, fill out their information and receive a care package from The Honey Pot. Supplies are limited to the first 150 people who sign up. But don’t worry! Acessa Health and The Honey Pot will be sending a promo code to up to 15,000 qualified Essence Magazine respondents valid through August.