The New York City Council has designated July 21 to July 27 as Hepatitis B Awareness Week.

According to the City Council, 100,000 New Yorkers are currently living with chronic hepatitis B.

Dr. Loris Drepaul, from the Perry Avenue Family Medical Center, says the virus is transmitted through bodily fluids or people are born with it. Most people get treated right away or the body can clear the virus on its own. But others suffer from chronic hepatitis B that affects liver function and can lead to liver cancer or death.

A three-round vaccine is administered to prevent hepatitis B, and Drepaul says students entering the city's public school system have to be vaccinated for it.