Transmission
People can get hepatitis C from infected blood or body fluids. Today, the most common mode of transmission is needle-sharing during intravenous drug use, and most new infections now occur among intravenous drug users.
Since 1992, when reliable blood screening procedures became available, the risk of transmission of hepatitis C by blood transfusion has fallen to less than one per million units of transfused blood, according to the CDC.
Rarely, the virus can be transmitted through sexual intercourse. In addition, an infected pregnant woman can infect her unborn baby.
Hepatitis C is not transmitted through shaking hands, coughing, sneezing, breastfeeding, or sharing cups and utensils.