New poll finds most Americans are in favor of wearing masks on planes

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Don't throw away your masks just yet.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has officially weighed in.

It's asking the Department of Justice to take action to bring back masking when traveling on planes and other public transit.

The CDC's public transportation mask mandate is back on life support after the agency issued a statement saying the mask requirement for planes and other shared transportation is a lawful order and well within CDC's legal authority to protect public health.

READ ALSO | Justice Department to appeal order voiding travel mask mandate

A Department of Justice spokesperson said in light of the CDC's assessment, the DOJ has filed a notice of appeal. A federal judge struck down the order on Monday.

As the back and forth begins, a new Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll finds despite fierce opposition to a federal travel mask requirement, 56% of Americans favor requiring masks on planes and other shared transportation, 24% are opposed and 20% are neutral.

"We still have to remember we're in a pandemic, and the CDC continues to recommend people wear that mask in indoor public transportation settings," said Dr. John Brownstein, an epidemiologist with Harvard Medical School. "They can't enforce it, but they recommend it."

Plus, masks are back on at a local high school after a spike in cases.

"Honestly, I wasn't that surprised, because, you know, spring break was Coachella," said high school sophomore Golden Miller. "Everyone was going on vacation to Hawaii or Mexico."

Students at Palisades Charter High School are - once again - required to wear masks indoors. The school reports a positive case rate exceeding 5%, a benchmark the school administration set months ago.

"I think I expected it," said student Diya Prakash. "I kind of had a feeling it would come back. I'm glad we caught it early."

As of yesterday, 23 students and six staff members have tested positive and are now isolating.

A Princess Cruise ship from Hawaii that docked in Los Angeles after some passengers tested positive for COVID-19 is now on its way to Vancouver.

It's unclear how many cases were detected on the Grand Princess, but the CDC said the number reached "orange status," meaning 3% percent of passengers or crew tested positive.

New infections grew by nearly 23% nationwide in the last week. Hospital admissions have increased about 5%, but hospitalizations are still 90% lower than the peak in January.

Then there's the new progress on a COVID vaccine for children under five. Pfizer and BioNTech said the shots could be available for this group by summer.

Last year, scientists weren't happy with the results from two doses and started testing a third dose.

The most recent CDC data reveals unvaccinated adults were about 20 times more likely to die from coronavirus and seven times more likely to require hospital admission compared to fully vaccinated and boosted adults.