Kate Middleton has fully earned the Queen’s trust, according to one royal expert. According to Majesty magazine’s managing editor, Joe Little, the Queen sees Kate as a “safe pair of hands” to help guide the future of the monarchy.

In a new interview with Us Weekly, Little said that “the Queen has great trust in Kate,” especially now, amid all the drama that’s surrounded the royal family for the past few years “in terms of the fallouts” (presumably referring to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s royal exit and Harry’s strained relationship with his brother, Prince William).

According to Little, the Queen made a big show of that trust when she bestowed Kate with “the royal family order, something that’s only given to the female members of the royal family who have been around for quite some time and are deemed to be of great support to the Queen.”

This trust is a big deal, of course, since the Queen knows that Kate will play an increasingly important role in the monarchy in the years to come.

“I would say that the Queen has great trust in the future Prince and Princess of Wales William and Catherine will be one day and, you know, in the fullness of time…King William and Queen Catherine,” Little added.

So how did Kate make her way into the Queen’s most trusted inner circle? By being a “team player” in the royal family and being a very low-key royal for her first few years as a royal, according to Little.

“Kate was very gradual,” Little explained. “She appeared occasionally, but for the first few years, it was really [as] William’s wife rather than a working member of the royal family.”

And when Kate did start taking on more royal duties and public projects, she was picky about where she focused her attentions, which Little says has also helped her thrive in royal life.

“Kate has found her own niche within the royal family,” Little said. “And she focuses on things that mean a great deal to her that she feels that she can give something to the charity…in a great way.”

Combine all that with the fact that, according to Little, Kate “adheres to tradition” as a royal while still recognizing how “the modern royal family has to evolve,” and you apparently hit the sweet spot of someone the Queen can really trust to essentially inherit her title someday (Kate will technically be Queen Consort, but still).

Senior royals to attend Cop26 as UK ‘pulls out all the stops’ in climate change fight

Hannah Furness
Sun, October 10, 2021, 6:54 PM

Queen Elizabeth - Chris Jackson/Getty Images

Britain is to "pull out all the stops" to convince critical nations including China to do their bit for climate change as the most senior members of the Royal family plan to attend the Cop26 conference en masse.

The royals command significant respect in nations essential to solving climate change and are understood to be keen to do their bit to push world leaders to make and keep pledges to save the environment.

Alok Sharma, the conference president, has said China, the "biggest emitter in the world", will have to be a key part of any agreement, adding that the "ball is in their court" to make the talks a success.

It is understood that Chinese negotiators are to attend the conference, but the attendance of Xi Jinping, the president, has not been confirmed.

The Queen, who at the age of 95 now rarely travels, is to attend next the Glasgow conference for a diplomatic reception, joined by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

Prince Charles and Prince William are expected to address the conference as well as hold talks with key world leaders.

Experts say the attendance of the Royal Family will boost the image of Britain taking climate talks seriously, with Prince Charles expected to lead on talks urging key international partners to contribute to the fight against climate change. The monarchy commands admiration in countries considered key to solving the problems facing the planet.

A study by Ipsos Mori in 2018 found 30 per cent of those surveyed in China felt the Royal family gives them a more positive view of Britain. Thirty-eight per cent felt "more positive" in India, with the Queen the most popular family member in both countries.

Convincing China to sign up to climate change measures is considered a crucial aim of Cop26.

Bob Ward, of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics, said: "The more the UK looks like it's taking this seriously, the more other countries will want to be seen to match that. So yes, I think it's entirely helpful to have such a strong showing from the Royal family.

"Prince Charles, and increasingly Prince William, have shown a particular interest in this area. Prince Charles is definitely recognised around the world as a deep thinker on these issues, and having a track record of having been interested in this for a long, long time. So it's not just the symbolism – they are people of substance on these issues.

"It's very difficult given all the other tensions with China at the moment. So again, I think if the Royal family are able to create a strong engagement with the Chinese leadership whilst they are here, that will help."

Gareth Redmond-King, the Cop26 communication and engagement lead at independent environment adviser the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, said: "The rest of the world will know the high regard we have for the royal family here in the UK, and the Queen in particular is very well-respected around the world.

"As host of the UN climate summit in November, it demonstrates the seriousness with which the UK is taking its responsibility that the Queen and other senior members of the royal family will be there in Glasgow to welcome world leaders and show their commitment to the outcome of this, the biggest and most important diplomatic summit in the UK in living memory.

"It should indicate that the UK is pulling out all the diplomatic stops and is committed to doing everything possible to ensure that we leave Glasgow with the Paris Agreement goal of keeping warming to 1.5C within reach."

All plan B Covid restrictions, including mask wearing, to end in England
PM says plan B measures will stop on 26 January and compulsory self-isolation for people with Covid on 24 March

Wed 19 Jan 2022 11.21 EST
Boris Johnson has announced the end of all Covid measures introduced to combat the Omicron variant – compulsory mask-wearing on public transport and in shops, guidance to work from home and vaccine certificates – from next week.

The prime minister also told the Commons that the legal requirement on people with coronavirus to self-isolate would be allowed to lapse when the regulations expired on 24 March, and that date could be brought forward.

To cheers from some on the Conservative benches, Johnson announced an immediate end to the need for pupils to wear masks at secondary schools.

While Johnson’s statement will please a number of his backbenchers, it prompted concern from teaching and health unions, and from NHS and public health representatives.

Responding for Labour, Keir Starmer said he would back the change as long as it was supported by evidence, saying Johnson must “reassure the public he is acting to protect their health, not just his job”.

Updating MPs, the prime minister said Covid data was “showing that time and again this government got the toughest decisions right” and that the plan B rules imposed in December could be lifted from next Thursday, the day after a pre-existing review point.

Although it had been expected that Johnson would announce the end of work-from-home guidance and the need to show a certificate proving vaccination or a recent negative Covid test to enter some venues, the immediate lifting of mandatory mask rules will come as a surprise to some.

“From tomorrow we will no longer require face masks in classrooms and the Department for Education will shortly remove national guidance on their use in communal areas,” Johnson told the Commons.

“In the country at large we will continue to suggest the use of face coverings in enclosed or crowded spaces, particularly when you come into contact with people you don’t normally meet, but we will trust the judgment of the British people and no longer criminalise anyone who chooses not to wear one.”

Here's exactly how to order your free COVID-19 tests from the government
Korin Miller
Tue, January 18, 2022, 7:36 PM·

COVID-19 test have been hard to track down in the U.S. for months. But, ever since the Omicron wave of the virus hit, it's been nearly impossible to find tests. Now, the government is here to help.

Starting today, you can order four free rapid COVID-19 tests for your household at COVIDtests.gov. It's part of a government initiative to make testing more accessible to all Americans.

The Biden Administration has purchased one billion at-home rapid COVID-19 tests to give out to free to the public, and half of those are available for order now, according to a White House fact sheet.

"There will be free tests available for every household, and to promote broad access, the initial program will allow four free tests to be requested per residential address," the fact sheet states.

The government also announced earlier this month that private health insurance companies are now required to cover up to eight at-home COVID-19 tests per person per month for free. So, a family of four should be able to get up to 32 at-home rapid COVID-19 tests covered by health insurance in a month. (There's no limit, though, on the number of tests that are covered if they're administered or ordered by a healthcare professional.)

Basically, the hope is that it will be easier to get access to at-home COVID-19 tests in the future, whether you get them straight from the government or buy them from a store (only to be reimbursed by your health insurance later).

How to order your free COVID-19 tests from the government

The process is quick and easy. Simply visit COVIDtests.gov and select the button that says, "order free at-home tests." From there, you'll be redirected to the USPS's website, which prompts you to fill in your first and last name, along with your email (for shipping notifications) and address.

Then, click on "check out now" — that's it!

Tests will usually ship within seven to 12 days of ordering, so it's a good idea to get your order in now to have tests handy for the just-in-case.

Of course, four tests will only get you so far. If you need a test ASAP or want to have more than four for your household, some at-home COVID-19 tests are now available to the general public at pharmacies, larger retailers and even grocery stores and online— they just often fly off shelves as soon as they're stocked. CVS even has a message on its website, urging people to check back daily if a particular test they're interested in is out of stock, noting that it could be available again the next day.

Still, if you can find one, it's a good idea to grab it (keep scrolling for tests that are currently in stock!). "It makes sense to have a kit on-hand so it’s there if needed," Dr. Amesh A. Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, tells Yahoo Life.

Some tests have been granted an emergency use authorization (EUA) by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is a designation used during public health emergencies — like a global pandemic — that says the FDA recognizes that these tests can be used to diagnose COVID-19 and that certain criteria have been met. It's different from a full FDA approval, which typically comes only after a longer period of time has passed and more data is collected.

How do at-home rapid COVID-19 tests work?

If you've never used an at-home COVID-19 test, you probably have some questions about what, exactly, these are and how they work.

There's some variation with at-home COVID-19 tests and how they work, but rapid tests are the most common type. (Some tests will have you collect a specimen and mail it to a lab, where it will be analyzed, but these are less popular, given that they take longer to get results.)

Most at-home tests will have you do a nasal swab, per the Centers for the Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), but others will ask you to give a saliva sample. Every test is different, so it's important to read the instructions carefully before you test and while looking at results, the CDC says. (The tests distributed by the government use a nasal sample, by the way.)

How accurate are at-home COVID-19 tests?

Rapid COVID-19 tests aren't necessarily as accurate as PCR tests, which are considered the gold standard of COVID-19 testing, but they can do a lot. One meta-analysis published in March found that rapid antigen tests picked up about 72 percent of symptomatic cases that were confirmed positive by a PCR test. The rapid tests were less sensitive with asymptomatic infections, though, only confirming 58 percent of those cases.

Each test kit conducts its own research on how effective the company's product is at detecting COVID-19 and, in general, Adalja says they're "adequate" at telling if you're infected or not — especially if you have symptoms of the virus.

There are several options out there for at-home COVID tests, but those that are authorized by the FDA have shared their data online. Among some of the more common tests, BinaxNOW says its test detects 84.6 percent of positive COVID-19 cases and 98.5 percent of negative cases, Ellume says its test has 96 percent accuracy in detecting symptomatic cases of COVID-19 and is 91 percent accurate in detecting asymptomatic cases. Fellow EUA test InteliSwab says its test identified 84 percent of positive samples in clinical trials, and 98 percent of negative samples, while QuickVue says its test picks up 83.5 percent of positive cases and 99.2 percent of negative cases. On/Go says its test is 95 percent accurate when used within the first seven days after you developed symptoms, while the iHealth rapid antigen test says it's 94.3 percent accurate at correctly identifying positive cases.

Where can I buy an at-home COVID-19 test ASAP?

Need a test now? We tracked down popular at-home COVID-19 tests that are still in stock. Here's where you can find them:

QuickVue: This test kit has you take a nasal swab, put it in a solution, dip in a test strip and then wait for your results. It's $24 at Walgreens and $24 at CVS.

On/Go: This kit involves taking a nasal swab, putting it in a solution, squeezing a few drops of the solution into a test kit and waiting for your results. There's an app to guide you through the whole process. It's $24 at Amazon and $30 at Walmart for two tests.

iHealth rapid antigen test: This Amazon bestselling test kit has you take a nasal swab, dip it in a solution, add a few drops of the solution to the test kit and wait for your results. It's $20 at Amazon for two tests.

FlowFlex: This test was recently authorized by the FDA. It involves swabbing your nose, sticking it in a special solution and analyzing the solution in a test kit. It's $10 at CVS and $8 at Target (currently sold out, but stock is replenished regularly)

BinaxNOW: This popular at-home kit involves taking a nasal swab and waiting 15 minutes for your result. You can find it at Walmart for $20 and CVS for $24 (currently sold out, but stock is replenished regularly)

You'll have to contact your insurance provider about reimbursement for your tests —every company's procedures are different. But definitely save your receipts to be safe.

USA TODAY
Free masks are on the way to pharmacies. Here's when N95 masks can be picked up at stores.
Kelly Tyko, USA TODAY
Wed, January 26, 2022, 3:05 PM·

As the government sends free COVID tests to households across the nation, 400 million free masks are also on their way.

Unlike the free testing kits which are ordered through a government website or hotline and shipped by the United States Postal Service, the free N95 masks will be available to pick up at “tens of thousands” of pharmacies and community health centers that have partnered with the federal government's COVID-19 vaccination campaign.

While the White House said the masks would be available for distribution starting this week, specific dates for all stores and locations are not yet available.

White House coronavirus response coordinator Jeff Zients said Friday it was the "largest deployment of personal protective equipment in U.S. history.”

The National Weather Service has issued air quality alerts today for the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest due to worsening Canadian wildfire smoke. Washington, D.C. and New York City have the worst air quality among U.S. cities.

A dust storm rolls over Camelback Mountain near Phoenix on July 17.
(Rob Schumacher/USA Today Network via Reuters)

Daily temperature records in Phoenix have continued to be set over recent weeks. On Monday, the city recorded a high of 116°F, tying the record set in 2018. Sunday offered a limited reprieve, with a high temperature of 114 that broke a streak of six consecutive days of temperatures above 115. In fact, Phoenix has been under an excessive heat warning posted by the National Weather Service since July 1.

The city has also set new records for the hottest low temperature it has ever recorded when the mercury fell to a nighttime low of 97°F last Wednesday, hours before Phoenix notched a record high of 119.

News To Know

(Reuters)

Coronavirus cases and hospitalizations are starting to rise again in several parts of the country, including Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles, Yahoo News’ Alexander Nazaryan reports. The reason? “People are congregating in air-conditioned settings, and that is providing an opportunity for transmission,” a doctor says.