PIP: Even though the Brazilian government's position on birth control in the last few years has been ambiguous, it is moving away from the pro-life attitude that was prevalent in the 1960s and through the mid-1970s. The economic conditions during this period created a sense of urgency in establishing family planning programs to divert possible economic and social repercussions. The creation and expansion of family planning services in the last 2 decades have improved the distribution of contraceptives, related health care, and research. The problems of birth control and family planning are the same in Brazil as in the rest of the world. There is and always will be a moral, ethical, religious, or political question from the groups that traditionally oppose these concepts. The theme of responsible birth control is 1 of the tools used in the attempt to get the message across. Some results of irresponsible birth control are abortions, poverty, and misery. Proposals for integrating the various family planning services have not been implemented due to a lack of priorities in spending the available funds. Most of these health groups place responsibility for providing these methods of family planning upon the State. The groups say the State needs to consider women's freedom, sexuality and personal preferences in providing the family planning programs. A few groups prefer private sector sponsorship in order to preserve the woman's options concerning health care. The need for health care and the question of democracy both need to be taken into consideration when dealing with human reproduction. Attention should also be paid to the quality of health service, in order to guarantee less distortion of the issue and provide better medical care for all.