Abstract
COVID-19 is entering its fifth year as an active contagion. The evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic is explored with attention to epidemiology, virology, prevalence and prevalence variations based on geographic regionality, age, gender, political affiliation and other variables, policy, proliferation of variants, evidence-based methods for diagnosis, vaccination, testing and treatment, COVID complications, and long COVID. Current consequences of COVID-19 party politics are described including current vaccination and mortality rates, long COVID denialism, COVID exceptionalism, abandonment of safety protocols, adverse outcomes and fatalities, healthcare provider burnout, impact on access to healthcare, economic impact, impact on population-wide IQ, and likely contagion trajectory. Specific recommendations are made for COVID-19 pandemic management.