Since contraception was legalized in 1967, the use of contraceptive products has steadily increased. Gradually, methods related to sexual intercourse (condoms, withdrawal, periodic abstinence, etc.) gave way to medical methods such as the pill and the IUD. In the early 1980s, the emergence of HIV/AIDS altered this trend, as none of the modern contraceptive methods provided protection against this new virus. Beginning in 1987, large-scale awareness campaigns, primarily targeting young people, encouraged condom use, making it, a few years later, the nearly universal method of protection during first sexual encounters. Despite greater knowledge and use of contraceptive methods, women are never completely safe from accidents (forgetting to take the pill, problems with condoms or IUDs, etc.). In such cases, they can turn to emergency contraception, which has been available without a prescription at pharmacies since June 1999. Beyond the maximum 72-hour window during which emergency contraception must be used, a woman may opt for a medical (RU486) or surgical abortion. Since 1975, in France, despite high contraceptive prevalence and a highly medicalized approach, the number of abortions has not decreased.[chapter excerpt]