Denis - The COVID info guy -

"Long COVID leaves thousands of L.A. County residents sick, broke and ignored"

“You’re not just becoming disabled,” said Elle Seibert, 31, who has dealt with debilitating fatigue and cardiac symptoms since 2020. “You’re realizing how easily society at large and people in your life will abandon you when you cannot offer them things.”

https://archive.md/z5oUp

The COVID-19 pandemic at 6 years: Mass death, debilitation and media silence

"The pandemic has killed over 30 million people worldwide, left more than 400 million suffering from Long COVID and inflicted incalculable damage on the social fabric of every country on Earth. It is one of the most catastrophic events in modern history—and it is not over"

Source: https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2026/03/11/umur-m11.html

Repeatedly getting Covid doesn’t build immunity, ‘it’s more like accumulating damage’

Leading vaccinologist Helen Petousis-Harris says there's not enough awareness of the impact of Covid-19 on overall health.

"What many people don't realise is that getting Covid repeatedly is not like building immunity, it's more like accumulating damage," she says.

Source: https://archive.md/Qsv13

"Disrupted iron levels after SARS-CoV-2 infection may trigger long COVID." "Problems with iron levels in the blood and the body's ability to regulate this important nutrient as a result of SARS-CoV-2 infection could be a key trigger for long COVID, new research has discovered." Source: https://www.news-medical.net/news/20260306/Disrupted-iron-levels-after-SARS-CoV-2-infection-may-trigger-long-COVID.aspx Study: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41590-024-01754-8

"Metformin not effective in treating long-COVID symptoms, study finds."

"Although a number of studies have found that a diabetes drug called metformin reduces the risk of long COVID, new research finds that it does not reduce symptoms of the condition."

Source: https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/covid-19/metformin-not-effective-treating-long-covid-symptoms-study-finds

Study: https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/ANNALS-25-04883

AUSTRALIA Weekly COVID Update: 6 March 2026

🔹TAS: ⬆️ (+38.8%)
🔹QLD: ⬆️ (+28.6%) 33 in hospital
🔹VIC: ⬆️ (+20.0%)
🔹NSW: ⬆️ (+7.2%)

🔸SA: ⬇️ (-6.3%)
🔸WA: ⬇️ (-8.0%) Avg 19/day in hospital

🔹Aged Care: The Australian government ended weekly COVID-19 reporting.

WA weekly COVID update: Week ending 1 March 2026

🔸COVID positivity rate: 1.7% est. (-1.0%)

🔹Reported cases: 92 (-8.0%)
🔹Hospitalisation: 19 per day (Stable)
🔹ICU: 7-day average is 0 (+0.0%)

Source: https://health.wa.gov.au/Articles/F_I/Infectious-disease-data/Virus-Watch

Tasmania MONTHLY COVID Update: 6 Mar 2026

From 6 Feb 2026 to 6 Mar 2026

🔸COVID Positivity rate: 3.4% (+0.9%)

🔹COVID: 25 (+38.8%)
🔹Influenza A: 12 (-25.0%)
🔹Influenza B: 1 (-66.6%)
🔹RSV: 19 (+58.3%)

Source: https://health.tas.gov.au/health-topics/infectious-diseases/acute-respiratory-infection-activity/update-acute-respiratory-infection-activity-tasmania

South Australia Weekly Respiratory Update: 28 Feb to 6 Mar 2026

Reported cases:

🔹COVID: 192 (-6.3%)
🔹Flu: 67 (+9.8%)
🔹RSV: 58 (+11.5%)
🔹Pertussis: 29 (-21.6%)

Reported deaths in 2026:

🔸COVID: <5
🔸Flu: 0
🔸RSV: 0
🔸Pertussis: 0

Source: https://sahealth.sa.gov.au/wps/wcm/connect/public+content/sa+health+internet/about+us/health+statistics/surveillance+of+notifiable+conditions/respiratory+infections+dashboard

Victorian Weekly Respiratory Surveillance Report: 6 Mar 2026

From 22 Feb to 28 Feb 2026:

🔸COVID positivity rate: 3.2% (+0.3%)

🔹COVID: 345 (+20%)
🔹Influenza A: 122 (-16%)
🔹Influenza B: 53 (+8%)
🔹RSV: 161 (+24%)

Source: https://health.vic.gov.au/infectious-diseases/victorian-respiratory-surveillance-report

"Long COVID — Here’s What To Know And The Challenges Ahead"

"Despite entering the 6th year since the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, the virus has not disappeared and the long-term consequences of infection continue"

Source: https://web.archive.org/web/20260303045305/https://www.forbes.com/sites/omerawan/2026/03/02/long-covid---heres-what-to-know-and-the-challenges-ahead/

UK: Man 'damaged beyond repair' over mother's death during Covid

"A man whose mother died during the pandemic has told the UK Covid-19 Inquiry that he and other relatives who lost loved ones are "damaged beyond repair"."

Source: https://archive.md/tmm6f

Two new books help children understand how Long COVID impacts their family members.

For 6 years we’ve heard many stories about people living with Long COVID, but few focus on children whose family members are affected. Author Sara Robitaille aims to change that with new children’s books about Long COVID.

🔹Long COVID Transformed My Mommy
🔹Long COVID Transformed My Sister into a Turtle

"Portions of the books’ proceeds will be donated to the Bateman Horne Center and advocacy organizations Long COVID Kids and Long Covid Families."

Source: https://thesicktimes.org/2026/03/04/two-new-books-help-children-understand-how-long-covid-impacts-their-family-members/

🧵(1/3) NSW respiratory surveillance reports: 5 March 2026

Week ending 28 February 2025:

🔸COVID positivity rate: 3.8% (+0.2%)

🔸Number of laboratories reporting COVID: 2 out of 4

🔹COVID: 954 (+7.2%)
🔹Influenza: 500 (-13.2%)
🔹RSV: 864 (+19.8%)

Source: https://health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/covid-19/Pages/reports.aspx

According to data published last month by the CDC.

🔹From July 2024 to June 2025, RSV caused an estimated 190,000–350,000 hospitalisations and 10,000 to 23,000 deaths deaths.

🔹During the same time, COVID-19 was linked to 290,000–450,000 hospitalisations and 34,000 to 53,000 deaths.

Source: https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/covid-19/56000-people-died-covid-19-or-rsv-last-year

Report: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/75/wr/mm7506a2.htm

Queensland Weekly Respiratory Surveillance Report: 2 March 2026

Reported cases:

🔹COVID: 607 (+28.6%)
🔹Influenza: 561 (+2.3%)
🔹RSV: 536 (+10.2%)

Hospitalisations:

🔸COVID: 33 (-2.9%)
🔸Influenza: 28 (Stable)
🔸RSV: 39 (+18.1%)

Source: https://health.qld.gov.au/clinical-practice/guidelines-procedures/diseases-infection/surveillance/reports/flu

New Zealand: COVID hospitalisations climb as the country enters a new wave

COVID deaths are also rising as New Zealand enters its 9th wave.

Wastewater data shows cases are at their highest level in over 6 months

Source: https://archive.md/ij18m

"Many with long COVID remain on the job despite reduced ability to work"

"More than half of people in a cross-sectional study with long COVID said their ability to work was poor, yet most were still working, suggesting a substantial burden of “presenteeism,” or reduced productivity while on the job"

Source: https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/covid-19/many-long-covid-remain-job-despite-reduced-ability-work

Study: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12889-026-26771-0

COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) can directly infect heart tissue.

"Researchers from the Centenary Institute and the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) have developed a human heart cell model demonstrating that the virus that causes COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) can directly infect heart tissue, providing new insight into why some people experience serious heart complications during and after infection."

Source: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-mini-hearts-covid-virus-infects.html

Study: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1758-5090/ae38d7

🇳🇿New Zealand COVID weekly update: 1 March 2026

23 Feb to 1 Mar 2026:

🔹Reported cases: 322 (-9.2%)
🔹Reported Deaths: 19 (+11.7%)
🔹Reported deaths last 30 days: 76
🔹Total deaths: 5,641 (+19)

10 Feb to 16 Feb 2026:

🔹Hospitalisations: 50 (Stable)

Source: https://tewhatuora.govt.nz/for-health-professionals/data-and-statistics/covid-19/reporting

This is what it really comes down to.

Masks are a reminder the pandemic isn’t over.

🔹COVID is airborne
🔹Each infection carries cumulative risk
🔹Long COVID has no cure
🔹The pandemic isn’t over
🔹Wearing a mask is still one of the best ways to protect yourself and others

Stay informed. Stay safe.

#COVID19

Meme source: https://x.com/kananaskinyeti/status/2027581079167885798

"How Covid Quietly Rewires the Brain"

"Covid wasn’t simply causing short-term confusion, but also leaving structural and biochemical footprints in patients’ brains"

Source: https://archive.md/FYsGV

"How long diseases like measles and the flu linger in the air — after an infected person has left the room"

RSV: up to 45 mins
Influenza: at least 1 hour
Rhinovirus: 1-2 hours
Measles: up to 2 hours
Norovirus: up to 2 hours
COVID-19: up to 3 hours
Chickenpox: several hours
Mumps: several hours
Tuberculosis (TB): 6-12 hours

Source: https://archive.md/dKnQP

USA: States Join WHO Network After U.S. Withdrawal "Illinois on Tuesday followed in California’s footsteps to become the second state to join the World Health Organization’s pandemic response network after President Donald Trump withdrew the U.S. from the organization." Source: https://archive.md/ylPeO

"Mass UK study debunks COVID vaccine myth." "A landmark study of nearly 14 million children in England has revealed that the Covid infection carries a higher risk of heart complications than the vaccination" Source: https://archive.md/PanVG Study: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanchi/article/PIIS2352-4642(25)00247-0/fulltext

"Why a cat virus may hold answers about long COVID" A new University of California, Davis study found that the virus linked to feline infectious peritonitis infects far more than a single immune cell type, as previously believed. Instead, it spreads across a wide range of immune cells, including those critical for fighting infection. Researchers say this broader immune impact may provide important clues for understanding long COVID and other persistent inflammatory illnesses in people. Source: https://archive.md/KR1eT Study: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378113525005000?via%3Dihub