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More than half of Canadians are perhaps blissfully unaware of how high the cost of sanitary napkins and tampons can be.
In September, the federal government announced it was investing $60 million for a pilot project that aimed to improve affordability and accessibility to essential menstrual products.
In Prime Minister Mark Carney’s second federal budget announced Thursday , it noted that it is advancing gender equality “by supporting the health, well-being, safety and economic and social participation of women, girls and gender-diverse people.”
Among the initiatives noted was the Menstrual Equity Fund — but the wording is a little different from September’s announcement.
Budget 2026 specified that the improved access to menstrual products is “particularly for low-income people who menstruate, including women, girls, trans and gender-diverse people.”
In case you missed it the first time, it added that about “1.24 million people who menstruate in Canada live below the poverty line.”
Budget 2026: "people who menstruate" pic.twitter.com/GasH7fPtK5
— Melanie Bennet (@MelanieBennet_) November 5, 2026
What social media had to say
That part of the budget was shared on X, and many called into question all the groups highlighted.
“It’s funny that they could just even end the sentence at ‘…particularly for low income people,’ but they don’t and instead probably upset someone not captured in the list they wrote,” one commenter mused.
Another wrote: “Apparently, protecting women and girls now requires redefining what women and girls are. Nothing says ‘progress’ quite like making half the population linguistically negotiable. Brilliant.”
A third person commented: “I knew this was Canada before I got to the part that said it,” while another added, “At least they’ve included women and girls.”
- Students protest removal of tampons from men’s washrooms
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- EDITORIAL: This is a silly policy. Full stop. Period.
Many Canadians are struggling to make ends meet — food bank usage has hit record highs and average hourly wages have not kept up with inflation, and like the rest of the world, the rising price of fuel has made everything, from gas to groceries, more expensive.
The latest fiscal plan will boost spending on arts, culture and homelessness while adding tens of millions more in new expenditures.
While building national sovereignty is “the next big step in our action plan,” Carney said, he noted his government’s budget “focuses on growth” and “on people.”
Canada’s independence is Carney’s priority, but for many Canadians, the cost of living is top of mind, and addressing the basics like putting food on tables should outweigh foreign trade missions.