...”It’s not airborne”...
Coughing would “airborne” body fluid.
That is called aerosols.....basically droplets projected by force, like a spray bottle..
Distance then becomes the factor..
Airborne, used in a science or medical sense, would be something that hangs in the air, and can be swept up by air currents and spread like a dandelion seed over a distance...
Aerosols rarely travel more than a few feet.