It's estimated more than 1000 people in Taranaki are living with hepatitis C; however, due to symptoms often not appearing for many years, half of them may be unaware they have it.
Taranaki DHB is raising awareness for this year's World Hepatitis Day by offering free hep C testing to find, test, treat and cure these people.
World Hepatitis Day is on July 28 every year. This year's theme is Hepatitis Can't Wait, with a person dying every 30 seconds from a hepatitis-related illness worldwide.
Dr Nadja Gottfert says free pop-up hep C testing clinics are being set up nationwide to make it quick and easy for at-risk Kiwis to get tested for the virus, and Taranaki is joining the drive.
"Pop-up clinics are one way we can work towards eliminating the hep C virus from the Taranaki community. Around 45,000 New Zealanders have hepatitis C, but many don't know as the symptoms can be subtle like tiredness, joint pain, loss of appetite, nausea and abdominal pain."