Hepatitis C

• Acacia Network (Promesa)*
  718-960-7532 or 718-734-2539
  Multiple locations
• Albert Einstein College of Medicine Wellness Centers
  Multiple locations
• BronxCare Family Wellness Center
  718-503-7715 or 718-901-6484
  1276 Fulton Avenue
  
• Montefiore Medical Center*
  844-CURE-HCV (844-287-3428)
  Multiple locations
  
• Sun River Health*†
  855-681-8700
  hepc@sunriver.org
  Multiple locations
  

* Offers free services for uninsured patients.
†Offers enrollment into the NYS Hepatitis C Patient Assistance Program.

No-Cost Walk-In Testing Sites

• BOOM! Health
  718-292-7718
  226 East 144th Street
• Dominican Sisters Family Health Services — Bronx
  718-665-6557
  279 Alexander Avenue
• Planned Parenthood — Project Street Beat
  212-965-7000
  349 East 149th Street, Third Floor

• Bedford-Stuyvesant Family Health Center
  718-636-4500
  1456 Fulton Street
• Brownsville Multiservice Family Health Center*
  718-345-5000
  259 Bristol Avenue
  
• Housing Works*†
  929 509-0914 or 646-624-9998
  Multiple locations
• NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County*
  718-245-5233
  451 Clarkson Avenue
• NYC Health + Hospitals/South Brooklyn Health*
  718-245-5233
  2601 Ocean Parkway
• Sun River Health — Sterling Health Center*†
  855-681-8700
  hepc@sunriver.org
  803 Sterling Place
• VOCAL-NY
  718-802-9540 x12
  300 Douglass Street

* Offers free services for uninsured patients.
†Offers enrollment into the NYS Hepatitis C Patient Assistance Program.

No-Cost Walk-In Testing Sites

• After Hours Project
  718-249-0755
  935 Broadway

• Harlem United
  212-289-2378
  290 Lenox Avenue, Lower level
• Mount Sinai Medical Center*†
  212-824-7553 or 646-951-1693
  Multiple locations
• New York-Presbyterian Hospital
  212-305-2862
  2180 Fort Washington Avenue
• OnPoint NYC — East Harlem
  212-828-8464
  104-106 East 126th Street
• Positive Health Project
  212-465-8304
  301 West 37th Street, #3

* Offers free services for uninsured patients.
†Offers enrollment into the NYS Hepatitis C Patient Assistance Program.

No-Cost Walk-In Testing Sites

• African Services Committee
  212-222-3882
  429 West 127th Street, Second Floor
• Latino Commission on AIDS — Oasis Office
  212-675-3288
  24 West 25th Street, Ninth Floor
• Safe Horizon — Streetwork Harlem
  212-695-2220
  209 West 125th Street
• OnPoint NYC — Washington Heights
  212-828-8464
  500 West 180th Street

• Acacia Network*
  718-734-2539
  116-38 Sutphin Boulevard
• Damien Family Care Centers
  718-298-5100
  Multiple locations
• Joseph P. Addabbo Family Health Center
  718-945-7150
  Multiple locations
• Damien Family Care Centers
  718-298-5100
  Multiple locations
• NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst*
  718-334-4000
  79-01 Broadway
• Sun River Health — Sutphin Health Center*
  855-681-8700
  hepc@sunriver.org
  105-04 Sutphin Boulevard, Jamaica

* Offers free services for uninsured patients.

No-Cost Walk-In Testing Site

• AIDS Center of Queens County (ACQC) — Jamaica
  718-896-2500
  161-21 Jamaica Avenue, Sixth Floor

• Sun River Health — Bay Street Health Center
  855-681-8700
  hepc@sunriver.org
  57 Bay Street

No-Cost Walk-In Testing Site

• Community Health Action of Staten Island (CHASI)
  718-808-1300 x1328
  26 Bay Street, Third Floor

There is no vaccine to prevent hepatitis C. The virus can live outside of the body for weeks so it is important to avoid contact with any items that may have been exposed to blood. The best ways to avoid getting hepatitis C or passing it to others are:

• Never share drug use equipment, such as needles, syringes or preparation supplies.
• If you snort or inject drugs, don’t share or reuse equipment. Only use new, sterile syringes and new supplies. If you are using drugs with other people, mark your equipment so that you can keep track of it.
• Find syringe service programs in the city using the NYC Health Map.

Learn more about the City’s drug use services that can help you stay safe.

• Use a physical barrier when having sex if you don’t know if your partner has hepatitis C. Find free NYC condoms and safer sex supplies.

Never share personal care items that could have blood on them, such as razors, clippers or toothbrushes. Clean blood spills immediately with one part bleach and nine parts water.

Anyone can get hepatitis C, and testing is the only way to know if you have it. All adults aged 18 years and older should be tested for hepatitis C at least once in their lifetime and in NYS, all pregnant people are required to be tested during each pregnancy.

Getting tested for hepatitis C is especially important for:

• People who use or inject drugs or have shared any drug use equipment, even once.
• People born between 1945 and 1965.
• People who received a blood transfusion or organ transplant before July 1992.
• People with HIV.

Periodic testing, as in testing more than once or based on suspected exposure, is recommended for:

• People with ongoing risk factors, including people who currently inject drugs and share needles, syringes or other drug equipment.
• Men who have sex with men, and transgender people who have sex with men.
• People taking HIV PrEP.
• People with certain medical conditions, including people who have ever received maintenance hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis and,
• Any person who requests hepatitis C testing.

Testing for hepatitis C is a two-step process:

1. A hepatitis C antibody test will show whether someone has ever had hepatitis C.
2. A hepatitis C RNA test will show whether someone has active hepatitis C right now.

To get tested for hepatitis C, talk to your health care provider or find a hepatitis C testing location near you.

If you have hepatitis C:

• Get into care with a health care provider who is experienced in managing and treating hepatitis C, even if you do not feel sick. Find a hepatitis C health care provider near you.
• Consult with your health care provider before taking vitamins, supplements, home remedies or over-the-counter medicine. Some of these products can harm your liver.
• Avoid alcohol and manage chronic conditions. Excessive alcohol use, diabetes and obesity can cause fatty liver disease. This can make hepatitis C worse. Ask your health care provider how to prevent fatty liver disease and manage chronic conditions.
• Get vaccinated for hepatitis A and hepatitis B.
• Make an appointment at the NYC Health immunization clinic, or search the NYC Health Map for locations near you.
• Avoid passing hepatitis C to others by making sure no one else has contact with your blood.

The great news is that people with hepatitis C can be cured in less than three months by taking daily oral medicines.

After you have been treated and cured of hepatitis C, there is no more virus in your blood and you can no longer pass hepatitis C to others. After you have been cured of hepatitis C, liver damage will stop and even reverse in some cases.

If you have hepatitis C, talk to your health care provider or find a hepatitis C testing location near you.

If you have been cured of hepatitis C and use drugs, talk to your health care provider about preventing hepatitis C reinfection or find a harm reduction program near you (PDF).

Reinfection may occur in some people who continue to share drug-use equipment or otherwise remain at risk for infection. Find out where to get sterile drug use equipment at a syringe service program near you (PDF).

If you get hepatitis C after being cured, you can be treated and cured again.