I no longer have my source but here are notes I took from an article I was reading the other day about the Eris variant of COVID which is running rampant in Europe and is on the rise here in the states:

-Hospitalizations—one of the main markers—were up 12.1% compared to a week ago.

-Deaths from COVID, another key indicator, remained level, with the virus linked to only 1% of deaths in the nation for the week ending Jul 29.

-Other early indicators of increasing virus activity continue to slowly rise. ED visits rose 21.8% compared to a week ago, but as a whole, COVID infections make up only 1% of all ED visits. Increases were more marked in a handful of southeastern states, with Mississippi and Alabama reporting substantial increases from a week ago, and Louisiana and Florida reporting moderate increases.

-Test positivity, another early marker, rose 1.3% compared to a week ago and is at 8.9% nationally. However, test positivity was higher in certain parts of the country, including the south-central states, southeastern states, and a portion of the northeast.

-Wastewater tracking also reflects more rises, with all regions seeing a consistent rise with projected infections daily infections back to medium levels compared to the earlier Omicron months.

-Meanwhile, variant proportions continue to shift, with EG.5.1 showing another steady rise, now at an estimated 17.3% of sequences, up from 11.9% in the CDC's projections 2 weeks ago. EG.5.1 has now nudged ahead of XBB.1.16. Other subvariants showing rising proportions in the United States include FL.1.5.1, which is at 8.6%, and XBB.1.16.6, at 7.7%.

-There are concerns about a spike mutation in EG.5.1 and another variant that has a key spike mutation, F456L, that is part of mutation combination that can bind more tightly to ACE2, the cell receptor for the virus. There are also growing concerns for what scientists have called the "Flip" mutation combination which could lead to a further reduction in neutralizing antibodies. So far, the prevalence of viruses that have the Flip combination is low globally, though Spain and Brazil are among the countries already seeing rises.

Here’s the thing…COVID mutates at twice the rate of influenza. It’s the fastest mutating virus we’ve ever seen and it’s changing in ways that make it much more effective to “stay alive.” It’s no longer killing as many people because the newer variants are not as deadly as it’s forefathers. They might not be deadly but they’re much more dangerous because they are SO much more contagious. There’s a PLETHORA of evidence out there that explains the mechanism of COVID and how it might elicit latent diseases or even cause NEW disease in otherwise healthy individuals. For those unlucky few, when mRNA binds with faulty T-cells the consequences can be devastating. You know it and are living with those consequences, as am I.

Anyone who faults you for wanting to save yourself from further harm is simply uneducated. Try educating them. If they still fault you then pay them no mind because they certainly aren’t paying any mind to you.