A California woman who punched a flight attendant in the face during a flight and broke her teeth has been sentenced to 15 months in federal prison.

Vyvianna Quinonez on Tuesday was also ordered by the federal judge in San Diego to pay nearly $26,000 in restitution and a $7,500 fine for the assault on a May 2021 Southwest flight between Sacramento and San Diego. Quinonez is prohibited from flying for three years while she is on supervised release and must participate in anger management classes or counseling.

Quinonez last year pleaded guilty to one count of interference with flight crew members and attendants.

The COVID-19 pandemic sent Heidi Whitney’s daughter into a tailspin.

Suddenly the San Diego middle schooler was sleeping all day and awake all night. When in-person classes resumed, she was so anxious at times that she begged to come home early, telling the nurse her stomach hurt.

Whitney tried to keep her daughter in class. But the teen’s desperate bids to get out of school escalated. Ultimately, she was hospitalized in a psychiatric ward, failed “pretty much everything” at school and was diagnosed with depression and ADHD.

As she started high school this fall, she was deemed eligible for special education services, because her disorders interfered with her ability to learn, but school officials said it was a close call. It was hard to know how much her symptoms were chronic or the result of mental health issues brought on by the pandemic, they said.

“They put my kid in a gray area,” said Whitney, a paralegal.

Schools contending with soaring student mental health needs and other challenges have been struggling to determine just how much the pandemic is to blame. Are the challenges the sign of a disability that will impair a student’s learning long term, or something more temporary?

It all adds to the desperation of parents trying to figure out how best to help their children. If a child doesn’t qualify for special education, where should parents go for help?

“I feel like because she went through the pandemic and she didn’t experience the normal junior high, the normal middle school experience, she developed the anxiety, the deep depression and she didn’t learn. She didn’t learn how to become a social kid,” Whitney said. “Everything got turned on its head.”

Schools are required to spell out how they will meet the needs of students with disabilities in Individualized Education Programs, and the demand for screening is high. Some schools have struggled to catch up with assessments that were delayed in the early days of the pandemic. For many, the task is also complicated by shortages of psychologists.

To qualify for special education services, a child’s school performance must be suffering because of a disability in one of 13 categories, according to federal law. They include autism, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, learning disabilities like dyslexia, developmental delays and “emotional disturbances.”

It’s important not to send children who might have had a tough time during the pandemic into the special education system, said John Eisenberg, the executive director of the National Association of State Directors of Special Education.

“That’s not what it was designed for,” he said. “It’s really designed for kids who need specially designed instruction. It’s a lifelong learning problem, not a dumping ground for kids that might have not got the greatest instruction during the pandemic or have major other issues.”

In the 2020-2021 school year, about 15% of all public school students received special education services under federal law, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

Among kids ages 6 and older, special education enrollment rose by 2.4% compared with the previous school year, according to federal data. The figures also showed a large drop in enrollment for younger, preschool-age students, many of whom were slow to return to formal schooling. The numbers varied widely from state to state. No data is available yet for last year.

While some special education directors worry the system is taking on too many students, advocates are hearing the opposite is happening, with schools moving too quickly to dismiss parent concerns.

Even now, some children are still having evaluations pushed off because of staffing shortages, said Marcie Lipsitt, a special education advocate in Michigan. In one district, evaluations came to a complete halt in May because there was no school psychologist to do them, she said.

When Heather Wright approached her son’s school last fall seeking help with the 9-year-old’s outbursts and other behavioral issues, staff suggested private testing. The stay-at-home mom from Sand Creek, Michigan, called eight places. The soonest she could get an appointment was in December of this year — a full 14 months later.

She also suspects her 16-year-old has a learning disability and is waiting for answers from the school about both children.

“I hear a lot of: ‘Well, everyone’s worse. It’s not just yours,’” she said. “Yeah, but, like, this is my child and he needs help.”

It can be challenging to tease out the differences between problems that stem directly from the pandemic and a true disability, said Brandi Tanner, an Atlanta-based psychologist who has been deluged with parents seeking evaluations for potential learning disabilities, ADHD and autism.

“I’m asking a lot more background questions about pre-COVID versus post-COVID, like, ‘Is this a change in functioning or was it something that was present before and has just lingered or gotten worse?’” she said.

Sherry Bell, a leader in the Department of Exceptional Children at Charleston County School District in South Carolina, said she is running into the issue as well.

“In my 28 years in special education, you know, having to rule out all of those factors is much more of a consideration than ever before, just because of the pandemic and the fact that kids spent all of that time at home,” said Bell.

The key is to have good systems in place to distinguish between a student with a lasting obstacle to learning and one that missed a lot of school because of the pandemic, said Kevin Rubenstein, president-elect of the Council of Administrators of Special Education.

“Good school leaders and great teachers are going to be able to do that,” he said.

The federal government, he noted, has provided vast amounts of COVID relief money for schools to offer tutoring, counseling and other support to help students recover from the pandemic.

But advocates worry about consequences down the line for students who do not receive the help they might need. Kids who slip through the cracks could end up having more disciplinary problems and diminished prospects for life after school, said Dan Stewart, the managing attorney for education and employment for the National Disability Rights Network.

Whitney, for her part, said she is relieved her daughter is getting help, including a case manager, as part of her IEP. She also will be able to leave class as needed if she feels anxious.

“I realize that a lot of kids were going through this,” she said. “We just went through COVID. Give them a break.”

Most adults in the United States agree that the worst of the coronavirus pandemic has passed, but they're divided over concerns and expectations for what's next, according to a survey published Tuesday by the Kaiser Family Foundation.

At this stage of the pandemic, opinions on masking and other restrictions aimed to minimize the spread are mixed — with a split largely down party lines.

Overall in the U.S., more than 60% of adults say they are concerned about the consequences of lifting restrictions and keeping them in place. But Democrats are far more likely to say they are concerned about the negative effects of lifting restrictions, while Republicans were more likely to be concerned about the negative effects of keeping restrictions in place.

More than 80% of Democrats said they were at least "somewhat" worried that immunocompromised people will be left behind if the government lifts masking restrictions, compared with 30% of Republicans. Democrats were also about three times more likely than Republicans to say that lifting restrictions could lead to more deaths in their community or cause hospitals to become overwhelmed.

About three-quarters of Republicans, meanwhile, said they worry that local businesses would suffer due to loss of revenue, compared with 50% of Democrats.

A majority of both Democrats (56%) and Republicans (73%) said they are worried that the mental health of kids and teenagers will suffer if restrictions are kept in place.

Red and blue states alike have started to lift mask mandates and roll back other pandemic-related restrictions such as vaccination requirements.

But on Friday — just a few days after KFF completed its latest survey — the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shifted the metrics used to drive local masking guidance, dropping the recommendation to mask indoors from 99% of people in the U.S. to less than 30%.

The new CDC recommendations also apply to schools.

Support for masks in schools has fallen since the start of the school year, and parents are now split on the issue, according to the KFF survey.

In September, more than 60% of parents favored some level of masking requirements in school. Now, 43% say masks should be required for all students and staff, 46% say there should be no requirement at all, and 9% say masks should be required only for the unvaccinated in schools.

The partisan divide is clear, with two-thirds of Democrats in support of universal masking requirements in schools and more than three-quarters of Republicans in favor of removing mask requirements completely in schools.

And as masking guidance shifts, vaccinations stagnate.

The KFF survey was fielded right as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration postponed making a decision on whether to authorize a Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for emergency use among children ages 6 months through 4 years.

Nearly 40% of parents of children younger than 5 said that communication from federal health agencies about vaccines for this age group has been confusing. Most say they don't have enough information about their safety and effectiveness, and more than two-thirds say they are not confident that COVID-19 vaccines are safe for young children.

Only about 1 in 5 parents of children younger than 5 says they plan to get their child vaccinated right away once they are eligible, according to the KFF survey.

About a third of children ages 5 to 11 are already vaccinated. But parents of another third of kids in this age group say that they will "definitely not" get their child vaccinated.

On Monday, new data from the New York State Department of Health showed that vaccine effectiveness waned quickly during the omicron surge, especially among children ages 5 to 11, but was still protective against severe disease.

The authors of the preprint study concluded that if other studies repeat these findings, the vaccine dose for younger children may need to be reviewed. The authors also said the data may demonstrate a need to continue "layered protections, including mask-wearing, to prevent infection and transmission" in younger children.

The KFF survey found that vaccination rates are higher for older children, with about 57% of children ages 12 to 17 vaccinated. But parents of another 30% say they will "definitely not" get their adolescent vaccinated.

Overall, vaccination rates among adults have remained largely unchanged, with only about half receiving a booster shot.

Yet more than a third of adults say it's safe to return to pre-pandemic activities.

This is especially true among Republicans (65%) and unvaccinated adults (60%), but it's far less common among Democrats (11%) and vaccinated adults (26%). Only a quarter of adults say it will be at least another year before it will be safe to return to normal.

The vast majority of those surveyed said "normal" life will be different going forward, including continued mask-wearing, continued precautions, changes to the way we work and social distancing.

New York City plans to soon lift one of its COVID-19 vaccine requirements for indoor activities, but Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving, who is unvaccinated, still won't be able to play home games due to the city's workplace vaccine mandate, a city official confirmed to CNN.

However, Irving would be able to attend home games as a spectator.

News of the restrictions were first reported by The Athletic's Shams Charania.

On Sunday, New York Mayor Eric Adams announced that provided the city's COVID-19 numbers continue to go down, he plans to lift the city's requirement to show proof of vaccination for indoor activities such as dining, attending gyms and entertainment facilities for those ages 5 and older starting March 7.

The move was part of a general relaxing of COVID-19 restrictions as the omicron wave of cases has sharply receded over the past month. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Sunday students will no longer be required to wear masks in schools, and Adams said he plans to remove the school mask mandate next week.

However, the city still has a mandate requiring all workers who perform in-person work or interact with the public to show proof they have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.

"Businesses may not allow any unvaccinated workers to come to their workplace," the city's website explains.

The city does allow an exception for non-NYC resident entertainers and professional athletes. That means unvaccinated players on other NBA teams are still allowed to play against the Nets at Brooklyn's Barclays Center.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver noted that paradox on ESPN's "Get Up" two weeks ago, saying the city rule "doesn't quite make sense to me."

"This law in New York, the oddity of it to me is that it only applies to home players," Silver said. "I think if ultimately that rule is about protecting people who are in the arena, it just doesn't quite make sense to me that an away player who is unvaccinated can play in Barclays but the home player can't. To me, that's a reason they should take a look at that ordinance."

He added that about 97% to 98% of NBA players were vaccinated.

As an unvaccinated player, Irving — a seven-time NBA All-Star — made his return to the Nets in January, playing in only road games due to the city's mandate. Irving has played in 15 games this season, averaging 25.1 points per game and 5.3 assists. The Nets are 32-29 on the season.

The NBA directed comments to the mayor's office. CNN has reached out to the Nets for comment but did not immediately hear back.

All government-mandated coronavirus restrictions in England were lifted on Thursday, including the legal requirement for people who test positive for COVID-19 to isolate at home.

Officials say that those who tested positive will still be advised to stay at home for at least five days. But, from Thursday they are not legally obliged to do so, and those on lower incomes will no longer get extra financial support to make up for a loss of income due to isolation.

The routine tracing of infected people's contacts has also been scrapped. Prime Minister Boris Johnson set out on Monday his Conservative government's strategy for "living with COVID" in the longer term. He said Britain is moving "from legal restrictions to personal responsibility," and that the end of all domestic legal measures marked the end of two of the darkest years in the country's peacetime history. 

The strategy includes plans to massively scale back free universal coronavirus testing from April 1. England already tossed most virus restrictions in January, after infection rates and hospitalizations fell following a surge in late December. Face masks are no longer legally required anywhere and vaccine passports for entering nightclubs and other venues were nixed. 

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, which set their own public health rules, have similarly opened up, though at different paces.

Some other European countries,  including Denmark and Sweden, have also recently lifted all COVID-19 restrictions.

Some critics have questioned whether it is too early to end all restrictions, especially isolation laws. The British Medical Association warned that Johnson's strategy fails to protect the most vulnerable people and those at the highest risk of harm from COVID-19.

Some 85% of people aged 12 and older in the U.K. are fully vaccinated, and about 66% have had their third or booster dose. 

The U.K. still has Europe's highest coronavirus toll after Russia, with more than 161,000 recorded deaths.

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PHOENIX, Ariz. — Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey is suing the Biden administration over its demand that the state stop sending millions in federal COVID-19 relief money to schools if they don’t have mask requirements or close due to COVID-19 outbreaks.

The lawsuit filed in Phoenix federal court on Friday comes a week after the U.S. Treasury Department demanded that Ducey either restructure the $163 million program to eliminate restrictions it says undermine public health recommendations or pay back the money.

The Treasury also wants changes to a $10 million program Ducey created that gives private school tuition money to parents if their children’s schools have mask mandates.

A Delta plane made an emergency landing in Oklahoma City Thursday night after a passenger allegedly assaulted a flight attendant and an air marshal.

Police told CNN that the man, who was allegedly drunk, attacked the flight attendant before assaulting the air marshal, who was helping restrain the man.

Following an emergency landing, the man was taken off the plane and later charged with public drunkenness and disorderly conduct, CNN reported.

The flight, which originated in Washington, D.C., eventually made it to its intended destination, Los Angeles.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) says it has received more than 5,000 reports of unruly passengers this year. The most severe cases have been forwarded to the FBI for prosecution.

The FAA first began noticing a spike in cases at the start of the pandemic. A majority of incidents have been over the federal mask mandate.

ALBANY, N.Y. — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Friday announced that she was instituting a statewide mask mandate for all businesses and venues in her state, effective Dec. 13

Under Hochul's order, businesses that require proof of vaccination to enter are exempt from the mandate. The policy applies to anyone ages two years old and older, any time they are indoors at a business or venue.

The mandate will remain in effect until Jan. 15, when the state will re-evaluate the situation based on COVID-19 data.

"As Governor, my two top priorities are to protect the health of New Yorkers and to protect the health of our economy," Hochul said in a statement. "The temporary measures I am taking today will help accomplish this through the holiday season. We shouldn't have reached the point where we are confronted with a winter surge, especially with the vaccine at our disposal, and I share many New Yorkers' frustration that we are not past this pandemic yet."

Hochul also thanked the 80% of New Yorkers who are currently fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

"If others will follow suit, these measures will no longer be necessary," her statement read.

Hochul's office cited increases in both the seven-day average case rate (up 43%) and hospitalizations (up 29%) for the new policy.

The state's mask policies remain unchanged for schools, public transit, homeless shelters, correctional facilities, nursing homes and health care settings.

This story was originally published by August Erbacher on Scripps station WKBW in Buffalo, New York.

Just when we thought U.S. travel rules were starting to stabilize, along comes omicron.

The dominoes fell quickly after South African health authorities informed the world of their discovery of the omicron variant of the coronavirus on Nov. 26.

The Biden administration rolled out controversial travel bans on arrivals from eight nations in southern Africa. Travelers found themselves unexpectedly stranded. And now U.S. officials have said they will be tightening travel regulations again.

Things are changing by the day and even by the hour, but here are some of the questions people have about U.S. travel rules — and answers we have right now:

Are testing rules for entry into the US changing?

Yes, according to President Joe Biden's announcement on Thursday of new measures aimed at curbing the pandemic.

All inbound international travelers will soon be required to test within one day of departure for the United States.

This new time frame will apply to everyone, "regardless of nationality or vaccination status," the plan outlined on the White House website says.

According to the plan posted, the tightening of the testing protocol will happen "early next week."

Currently, vaccinated travelers are required to test within three days of their departure. There is a requirement for foreign travelers arriving in the United States to be fully vaccinated.

Unvaccinated Americans and legal permanent residents are allowed to enter the country with a test taken within one day of departing for the United States. The new rule will make the testing time frame one day for everyone.

Biden also announced that the federal mask mandate requiring travelers to wear masks in airports, on planes and on other modes of public transportation such as trains and buses has been extended through March 18.

Is there a post-arrival testing or quarantine requirement?

There is not. "We're not announcing any steps on post-arrival testing and quarantine," a senior administration official said in a press briefing on Wednesday evening.

"I will say — look, if additional measures are recommended, if additional measures can be implemented well and are effective, we won't hesitate to take them, but we're not taking them today," the official said, according to a White House transcript of that briefing.

What countries fall under the new US travel ban?

The travel bans announced on Nov. 26 bar entry into the U.S. of noncitizens coming from eight countries in southern Africa. They are Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe.

On Nov. 27, the CDC placed them all at Level 4 "very high" risk for COVID-19. (Botswana was already at Level 4 because of its caseload — more than 500 per 100,000 residents in the past 28 days.)

Citizens of those nations and citizens of other nations who have been traveling there in the past 14 days are currently not allowed entry into the United States.

Can US citizens already in those nations return?

Yes, they can.

Per the White House proclamation, the CDC says that "citizens and lawful permanent residents of the United States, certain family members, and other individuals who meet specified exceptions, who have been in one of the countries listed above in the past 14 days will be allowed to enter the United States."

As of Dec. 2, they still had to follow the rules already in place to re-enter: A negative result from a COVID-19 test within three days of travel if fully vaccinated and within one day of travel if unvaccinated.

Can US citizens still travel to the banned nations?

Technically, yes.

At least two U.S. carriers are still flying back and forth from South Africa. Delta Air Lines is still offering Atlanta-Johannesburg service, and United Airlines is still offering Newark-Johannesburg service.

United Airlines is also resuming nonstop service between Newark and Cape Town, according to a news release from South African Tourism. The release also said, "we would like to emphasize that our country remains open for all those travelers who wish to visit."

Whether it's advisable to go is another matter. The CDC advises against it.

You might also encounter new travel barriers. For instance, Zimbabwe imposed a lockdown and mandatory quarantine on Nov. 30, for travelers, state-run news agency NewZiana reported.

Going to southern African nations while bans are in place around the world might cause you to be banned from going to other countries. For instance, the United Kingdom is not allowing anyone who has been to "red list "countries — which include Angola and Zambia as well as the eight discussed above — from entering except its own returning citizens.

Argentina, Canada, Italy and other nations also have put bans in place, each with their own specific parameters.

What is the US doing to detect the virus?

The CDC said it would expand omicron surveillance at four major U.S. international airports.

The CDC also confirmed to CNN on Wednesday that officials have directed airlines carrying passengers that have been to certain southern African nations to share those passengers' contact information with the agency.

Airlines have already been gathering contact information from passengers under a CDC contact tracing order that has been in effect since Nov. 8.

As the world waits to learn how the omicron variant might impact the global COVID-19 pandemic, it's easy to get caught up in the unknowns. Instead, health officials are reminding us of the simple yet effective tools we all have to combat the virus.

Here's a refresher on how to protect yourself and your loved ones.

Get vaccinated

Getting vaccinated is one of the best ways to protect yourself and those around you. Vaccines are readily available across the U.S. and many Americans are now eligible for a booster shot.

"Get your vaccine, get your booster," Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, told CNN. "It's the best chance we've got to drive this COVID-19 pandemic away."

Vaccines have proven to be safe and effective at reducing severe COVID-19 cases.

Wear a mask properly

It's simple, but wearing a mask properly is one of the most important ways you can protect yourself and those around you, health experts say.

N95 masks offer the best protection. Washable, breathable cloth masks will do the job, but they should have at least two layers — three are better — and you can add a filter for more protection.

Masks should cover both your nose and mouth, and should fit snugly, with no gaps.

Goggles or face shields aren't necessarily recommended for eye protection if you are not a health care worker or are in high-risk situations, health experts have said.

Check for symptoms and get tested

Fever, coughing and shortness of breath are among the most common symptoms of COVID-19, the disease the coronavirus causes.

But there's also diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, fatigue, loss of smell and taste, body aches, mental confusion and even delirium.

Have a runny or stuffed-up nose? Unless you have a fever, it's probably just allergies, such as can be caused by leaf mold at this time of year.

If you have been exposed to the coronavirus, symptoms will probably show up within a week, health experts say. That is, if you are going to have them at all — which some people don't. Any or all symptoms can appear between two and 14 days after exposure to the virus, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

If you suspect you have been infected, go to a testing center near you. Contact your local or state health department to find out where to get a test.

Serious symptoms include difficulty breathing, persistent pain or pressure in your chest, new confusion, the inability to stay awake or wake up and bluish face or lips, according to the CDC.

Wash your hands

Washing your hands frequently is still one of the most basic and simple things you can do.

Work up a good lather and scrub your hands, fingers and under your nails for at least 20 seconds. Use clean, running water to thoroughly rinse, then scrub them dry.

Washing for at least 20 seconds has been shown to remove more microbes than washing for shorter periods. Singing "Happy Birthday" twice while washing can work as a "timer."

Frequent handwashing will also protect you from all sorts of harmful bacteria and viruses other than the new coronavirus, including influenza and the common cold.

Use hand sanitizer

It's not as good as washing your hands with good old soap, but hand sanitizer can be used when soap isn't an option.

It's important both of your hands are covered completely, including between the fingers and under the nails. Rub your hands until they are dry. Use it generously if your hands are greasy or really dirty since the sanitizer might not be as effective in that case, according to the CDC.

Unlike at the beginning of the pandemic, hand sanitizer is relatively easy to find in stores, so don't try to make your own. Health experts say it's critical you get the right concentration of alcohol to disable the virus.

Reduce your risk

The best thing you can do is stay home, if possible, and reduce your risk by cutting down on errands and trips to the store.

Not everyone has the luxury of doing it, of course, but social distancing — keeping 6 feet between you and others outside your household — and wearing a mask are critical.

The safest place outside your home is the outdoors. But even there, you should keep a safe distance from people you don't live with.

You can also reduce risk by getting take-out food instead of dining in restaurants and avoiding public transportation, if possible.

CHICAGO — Nearly 200 million people are now fully vaccinated with more than 30 million having received a booster shot. With lower infection rates, mask mandates remain. Some are asking whether we’re nearing the end of the pandemic. The answer to that is complex.

While most would agree, the worst of the outbreak is over. Experts say it’s unlikely COVID-19 will ever completely disappear.

“If we vaccinated every single person, we could probably get rid of this thing, get it down to a dull roar. That's never going to happen,” said Dr. Robert Murphy, executive director of the Institute for Global Health at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine.

That means that life beyond the pandemic won’t quite be the same as before it.

“For vaccinated individuals, they are a lot closer to being able to treat this pandemic like it's just an endemic problem that is going to come up every year and they just need to get their booster and be careful,” said Dr. Emily Landon, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Chicago Medicine. “For unvaccinated individuals, they're still at extremely high risk of very bad infection.”

According to the CDC right now, about 42% of the entire U.S. population is not fully vaccinated. More than 30 million people – about 15%— of those who are fully vaccinated have already gotten a booster.

But there are more tools in the toolbox: monoclonal antibodies, two promising antiviral drugs that have applied for emergency use authorization, and millions of children are now eligible for vaccination.

The current seven-day moving average of daily new cases dropped by 1.4% from the previous week to just over 70,000.

“I look at the bumps on the curve, the United States is going into the fifth wave right now,” said Murphy.

This winter, with less moisture in the air, concentrated indoor aerosols mean everyone in the northern hemisphere will be more vulnerable to infection.

“We're going to see a bump,” said Landon. “We're already seeing a bump in the northern part of the country. How big that bump is going to be is going to depend a lot based on your community and the outbreaks are going to be very localized.”

And while we could expect to see lower levels of transmission year-round, it's not likely to ever go out of season.

“It's not seasonal. Seasons may impact it, but we had a spike in August. That's crazy. It's all about behavior and the delta variant, and the virus has changed. It's much more contagious,” said Murphy.

Some experts say no matter the transmission rates, masks will need to remain in use in certain situations indefinitely.

“The time when we're going to be able to stop wearing masks when people stop worrying about them as some sort of punishment and stop making them into something bigger than they are,” said Landon.

And while some believe we could be turning the corner, just how long this pandemic will last is uncertain.

“Some of the pandemics have lasted five or 10 years,” said Murphy. “We don't know how long this one is going to last. Usually, they just kind of mysteriously disappeared.”

Unfortunately, Dr. Murphy says that may be wishful thinking.

A World Health Organization funded study published this week in the Lancet found that masks, physical distancing and eye protection offer substantial reduction in the spread of COVID-19.

The study cautioned that even when used effectively and in combination, none of the interventions will completely prevent the spread of the virus. But the study’s authors offer some optimism the virus can be significantly slowed sans a vaccine.

Keeping a distance of 1 meter in both healthcare and community settings reduced the risk of infection by 82 percent, according the research authored by a group of six infectious disease experts. Every additional meter of separation more than doubled the relative protection.

“This evidence is important to support community physical distancing guidelines and shows risk reduction is feasible by physical distancing,” the study said. “Moreover, this finding can inform lifting of societal restrictions and safer ways of gathering in the community.”

The study found that infectious droplets can travel up to 8 feet, and can stay in the air for hours.

The use of masks and respirators with those infected with the virus reduced the risk of spreading the infection by 85%. The authors analyzed data that showed that N95 respirators in healthcare settings were up to 96% effective. Other masks were found to be 77% effective.

Dr. Derek Chu from McMaster University, and co-author of the study, found that the most effective homemade masks should be ones that are water-resistant, have multiple layers, and are a good facial fit.

The study also suggests that wearing eye protection resulted in a 78% reduction in infection; infection via the ocular route might occur by aerosol transmission or self-inoculation the study said. This point was one the researchers had less confidence in, and further data is needed to draw a conclusion.

To read the full study, click

here.

A trick-or-treater ruined Halloween for people in a Massachusetts neighborhood.

He was caught on camera snatching an entire bowl of candy out of the hands of a homeowner.

"Oh my God," the homeowner is heard saying as the trick-or-treater ran off with the candy.

Sharon police say the masked trick-or-treater stole entire bowls of candy from multiple homes.

They are asking the community to come forward with any information about the trick-or-treater.

As start dates for school inch closer, educators and health officials are unveiling plans to go back to school safely. One focus: face masks.

“It’s important for people to understand germs,” Laura-Anne Cleveland, an associate nursing officer at Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children, said.

Cleveland says everything starts with education.

“Trying to get them to understand that air and breath from us can have germs in it," she said.

Cleveland said the best way to do that with younger kids is through a little science experiment.

“Putting a container of water, putting pepper in it and putting soap on their finger and putting your finger in. The pepper disperses, and so showing that the pepper is the germs and soap and things like that are really good to be able to use,” she explained.

As schools finalize plans for reopening--whether that be online, in person, or a combination of the two--masks have become one of the biggest talking points.

“I have never dealt with anything like this,” Marty Gutierrez, an 8th-grade math teacher, said.

Gutierrez has been teaching for 26 years.

“So much is up in the air and we start back to school in three weeks,” he explained. “And we don’t have guidelines or they are changing every day or even two, three times a day.”

One of those guidelines is whether masks will be recommended or required.

“Like anything recommended or required with middle school kids, it’s that year where you push boundaries,” Gutierrez said. “I get parents and their ideals and values and what they want their freedoms to be. Just getting kids to wear masks is going to be difficult enough, and we know we’re going to have some kids that ‘You know what? My parents don’t want me wearing a mask.'”

If schools recommend masks instead of requiring them, there are fears this could open up doors for bullying.

“I’m sure that there will be some kids that are harassing kids for not wearing a mask, or kids that have a different mask,” he said.

Or conversations about fairness.

“If you have a sibling that has to wear a mask but you don't have to, it’s going to not feel fair,” Cleveland said.

Masks have become controversial, but to Gutierrez, it’s just an extra layer of safety for everyone in the building, including those who may be at high-risk for getting COVID-19.

“People are scared. I have friends that have children that are recovering from cancer, or I have friends that take care of elderly parents that are immunocompromised,” he said.

Cleveland and Gutierrez, both parents, themselves, want to keep kids in school and make sure kids remember the why.

“Why are we wearing masks? Why are we wearing face shields? Things like that, and getting the children to understand that,” Cleveland explained.

“This is the best we can do right now, and if we don't follow these guidelines, you're not going to be seeing these friends again, we’re going to go back to that situation where you’re only going to see them online. So, I think it’s expressing that trade-off,” Gutierrez said.

PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — There is a group of retired ladies living in a Pinellas County RV park who have formed their own assembly line when it comes to making masks.

They call themselves the Crafty Ladies of Sherwood Forrest RV Resort. They are making hundreds of masks a week, and because the bulk of them go to our veterans, patriotism is a big deal.

The red, white and blue runs deep not just in their fabric but their spirit.

“I feel helpless with what’s going on with the Covid and this is my tiny little way of contributing,” said Micheal Barsi.

Barsi is one of more than a dozen residents who are part of the group. Most of them have two main things in common, they are skilled with a sewing machine and are part of a military family.

For the past six years, the Crafty Ladies have been making quilts for the Service Source organization, Veterans Mall. However, when the pandemic hit, they shifted their needle and thread to make masks for veterans.

“They had to sacrifice and people who had to sacrifice I want to help as much as I can,” said Nancy Barandon.

The Crafty Ladies said the best part is the camaraderie, working together on a project that could save lives.

“It does make us feel good to see people using them,” said Jeannie Powell.

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Gov. Andy Beshear reported 700 new COVID-19 cases and seven virus-related deaths for a total of 32,197 total positive cases and 751 virus-related deaths on Tuesday.

“While today we have a higher number than we did at this time last week, we believe there is a general leveling off though today there are more cases than last week," the governor said at his daily press briefing Tuesday.

Kentucky's positivity rate had fallen slightly to 5.18% by Monday, and it rose again to 5.24% on Tuesday, an amount Beshear said is not a significant bump.

Still, he warned that with the rising case numbers last month, state and health officials expect numbers of virus-related deaths to increase within several weeks to a month.

"It's probably going to be a really hard August," Beshear said.

But since the state required Kentuckians to mask up on July 10, case growth has slowed from 52% from July 13-19 to 5% from July 27 - Aug. 2. Beshear said Kentuckians can expect that mask mandate, slated to last 30 days, to be extended.

“Before we can have a full plateau, before we can start seeing case numbers go down, you have to slow the growth that is out there," Beshear said.

In her first appearance during the governor's press conference, Kentucky First Lady Britainy Beshear called on Kentuckians to donate face masks for students, educators and staff returning to school later this month through the launch of the new Coverings for Kids program.

“It’s more important than ever that we are proactive in preparing our schools for a safe return when that day eventually comes,” she said Tuesday.

Starting Aug. 11, people can drop off purchased or handmade masks at district donation centers. For more information on donating face masks, click here.

Free testing in NKY this week

In Northern Kentucky, St. Elizabeth Healthcare and Covington's Gravity Diagnostics will offer free, appointment-only drive-thru testing at 25 Atlantic Ave in Erlanger starting Thursday. The site, the former Toyota HQ building off Mineola Pike, will be open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Additionally, appointment-only drive-up testing will be available through St. E at 7200 Alexandria Pike, Alexandria starting Tuesday, Aug. 11. The free testing site will be open on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Schedule an appointment at those sites online at www.stelizabeth.com/covid-testing.

Kentucky has administered 650,093 COVID-19 tests so far. To find all coronavirus testing locations near you, click here.

More Ky. case numbers

NKY Health reported that 2,878 people in Boone, Campbell, Kenton and Grant counties have tested positive for coronavirus since March, with 833 active virus cases. As of Tuesday, 81 people have died of the virus and 1,964 people have recovered. Gov. Beshear reported that a 50-year-old man in Kenton County died of coronavirus on Tuesday.

In 248 of Kentucky's long-term care facilities, 2,635 residents (444 active cases) and 1,454 staff (213 active cases) have tested positive for the virus; 478 residents and four staff members have reportedly died of the virus as of Tuesday.

In 110 Kentucky childcare centers, 84 staff and 75 children have tested positive for COVID-19 as of Tuesday.

Restaurants reduce capacity, travel advisory updated

To prevent statewide shutdowns and case surges seen in other states, Beshear ordered restaurants to reduce indoor dining capacity to 25% and maximize outdoor seating when possible. On Tuesday, Beshear said he would look into a possibly capacity increases when Kentucky's positivity rate dips back under 5%.

The governor announced a travel advisory earlier this month, asking Kentuckians to avoid traveling to states with high COVID-19 positivity rates, and if they do travel to hard-hit areas to quarantine for two weeks.

On Monday, the list of states on the travel advisory included Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Idaho, Kansas, Mississippi, Nevada and South Carolina. Ahead of events in Louisville, including the 51st Street Rod Nationals this weekend, Beshear encouraged people attending from out-of-state to be responsible and get tested.

Beshear also recently enacted a 10-person limit on social gatherings, a delay of school start dates to the third week of August and a two-week shutdown for all bars.

Watch a replay of the briefing in the player below:

A young boy took his mother's advice on mask-wearing very seriously — maybe a little too seriously.

When Nicole Peoples got her son's school picture day photos this year, she was shocked by the results.

Her son's eyes weren't closed, he didn't have a stain on his shirt and his hair looked fine. But there was something wrong with his smile; he didn't have one. That's because it was being blocked by a mask.

Peoples turned to Facebook to share the photos, explaining that her son, Mason, really took her rules on not taking his mask off to heart.

Photographer: Ok, take your mask off.

Mason: My mom said to keep it on all the time unless I'm eating and far away from everybody.

Photographer: I'm sure it's ok to take it off for your pictures.

Mason: No, my mom seriously told me to make sure to keep it on.

Photographer: Are you sure you don't want to take it off for 2 seconds?

Mason: No Thank you, I always listen to my mom!

Photographer: Ok, say cheese!

Nicole Peoples Facebook

"I'm so proud of him for sticking to his word," Peoples said in her post. "But I should have been more clear about my rules on this day."

In a later update to her post after the photo went viral, amassing more than 20,000 likes, she added that she and Mason were overjoyed with the kind words and support from everyone.

"He has read so many of your comments with the biggest smile on his face," Peoples wrote. "He is so happy to see so many people proud of him and saying he did such a good job!"

Peoples also announced that after many requests from online supporters she had created a GoFundMe for Mason to start a scholarship fund. At the time of publication, more than $3,700 had been raised.

"He is such a good kind hearted, caring, loving, smart, and helpful little boy," Peoples wrote. "Thank you for showing him that his honesty and integrity will make a big difference in this world."

Alaska Airlines said they've banned 14 passengers after a fight broke out during a mid-air flight from DC to Seattle.

In an email to EW Scripps, an Alaska Airlines spokesperson said the incident happened Thursday on Alaska Flight 1085 from Washington Dulles International Airport.

The spokesperson added that several passengers were "non-mask compliant, rowdy, argumentative, and harassed our crew members," and the airline banned 14 of them.

"Their behavior was unacceptable," the spokesperson said in an email. "We apologize to our other guests who were made uncomfortable on the flight. We will not tolerate any disturbance onboard our aircraft or at any of the airports we serve."

The in-flight incident comes a day after a deadly riot erupted after Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol.

On Thursday, American Airlines told EW Scripps in an email that they had increased staffing at DC-area airports as a precautionary measure.

As Trump supporters prepared to fly home Thursday after Wednesday's violent riot, the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA) issued a statement suggesting that those who flew into DC and participated in the Capitol's breaching should be banned from flying.

AFA linked to a video that showed issues arising on an American Airlines flight from Dallas to DC in that same press release.

Alaska Airlines added that they had banned 302 passengers for violating their mask policy since it went into effect on Aug. 7.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has once again overhauled its mask guidance this week, asking all Americans to go back to wearing face masks in indoor public spaces and in crowded outdoor areas, regardless of vaccination status.

The agency's new mask recommendations come as the delta variant of COVID-19 continues to spread, leading to an uptick in new coronavirus cases across the United States. And since vaccines are still being observed in trials for children under 12, CDC officials also updated guidelines asking all students in grades K-12 to mask up while in school this fall.

The delta variant is more contagious than other forms of COVID-19. People infected with this strain may carry up to 1,000 times more viral airborne particles in their airways than those infected with earlier versions, according to emerging data. While vaccines prevent most to all of the deadly symptoms associated with COVID-19 illnesses, CDC officials did also recently acknowledge that vaccinated people can indeed spread the disease to others around them.

"The best recommendation would be, regardless of vaccination status, to continue wearing a mask to protect your loved ones and yourself against COVID as an added layer of protection," said Dr. Vivek Cherian, an internal medicine physician affiliated with the University of Maryland Medical System.

But if you're still wearing the same face masks you rushed to purchase (or even sew yourself) back in the early months of the pandemic, it's important to know these masks are likely less protective than other options available now.

What's the best mask to protect against the delta variant?

Cloth masks made in the first half of 2020 weren't designed as stringently as they are now, and it wasn't until late 2020 and early 2021 that CDC officials began making more stringent mask recommendations to Americans (like in January, when officials asked Americans to consider double-masking). While cloth masks certainly are better than no mask at all when it comes to preventing the spread of COVID-19, the fit and construction of medical-grade surgical face masks are usually more comprehensive — and currently, they're readily available for consumers.

Good Housekeeping Institute Textiles Director Lexie Sachs said that surgical masks are usually made by PPE manufacturers who adhere to strict quality standards that have been in place since long before the pandemic began.

"We know they're typically safer in terms of filtration and fit," Sachs added, as opposed to cloth masks made by fashion retailers who don't usually deal with medical standards in construction. "They're often more breathable as well."

Most crucially, you can rest assured that the medical-grade surgical mask you're wearing is tested to meet standards set forth by ASTM International, an industry group in charge of establishing safety minimums for many products, including face masks.