If the transmissibility of this variant is high, with vaccines (including boosters) offering minimal protection against getting it, I worry about vaccinated folks (like me) getting it and passing on to those who can't get vaccinated for one reason or another.

For me specifically, both of my kids are vaxxed (my youngest is 7, just got his second dose so he isn't "fully" protected for another week or so. They are in school full time, and cases in the district have been skyrocketing. But I have a baby niece who is 15 months, obviously too young to get vaxxed. We'd been keeping her a few times a month, but news like this absolutely gives me pause about continuing that - I'd be horrified if one of my kids got sick and passed it on to her.

That situation isn't unique - I have plenty of friends/family with kids too young to get vaxxed, or people who ARE fully vaccinated but have other health conditions which might put them in the category of needing hospitalization. I have an employee of mine, fully vaxxed, who just got out of the hospital with a breakthrough case. She has several underlying health conditions, but is definitely an example that if a more transmissible varrient is out there spreading without the vaccines keeping the spread down, it's gonna eventually have some inpact when it comes to hospitalizations/deaths.

You also have the public perception issue of folks STILL holding out on getting vaccinated, and this just adds another thing to add to their confirmation bias...