AMERICAN TRAVEL IS OPENING UP, IF YOU’RE VAXXED — The Biden administration will soon reopen its land borders with Mexico and Canada to fully vaccinated travelers in its latest move to ease pandemic restrictions imposed on foreigners trying to enter the country for tourism and other “nonessential” reasons. The plan is set to take effect next month alongside a previously announced easing of limits on vaccinated air travelers from certain countries — decisions that come as Covid-19 cases have ebbed and are likely to please the U.S.’ allies. But that’s just the first phase. The White House will impose a blanket vaccination requirement for all non-U.S. citizens crossing land borders beginning in January, no matter their reason for entering the country. There will be no Covid-19 testing alternative, senior administration officials told reporters, meaning businesses that rely on moving products from Canada or Mexico into the U.S. will need to ensure their drivers are fully inoculated. Some big elements are still TBD. Officials have yet to set a specific date for when the policies take effect. Also unclear is what vaccination paperwork will be required and what will qualify as “fully vaccinated” — questions the CDC is expected to answer in the coming days. Unlike air travelers, most of those entering the U.S. by land will only need to attest to vaccination status — though border officers will have the ability to ask anybody for proof. The new system also won’t apply to asylum-seeking migrants expelled under Title 42. Still, it’s the latest sign Biden is trying to move the U.S. back toward normal while also making Covid-19 vaccination part of that new reality. FDA CLEARS FIRST-EVER E-CIGARETTE — As it authorized an e-cigarette for the first time Tuesday, the FDA also took a stance: The product provides a benefit to adult smokers who switch to vaping. The agency granted marketing orders to Vuse, a company owned by the cigarette giant R.J. Reynolds, for its Vuse Solo closed e-cigarette device and two tobacco-flavored cartridges. The FDA also denied marketing orders for 10 flavored e-cigarette products from R.J. Reynolds, POLITICO’s Katherine Ellen Foley writes. Why it matters: The decision to authorize some e-cigarettes products comes as the FDA finishes evaluating millions of marketing applications filed by vape makers seeking permission to keep their goods on the market. The agency ruled on many, but not all, applications in accordance with a court-ordered Sept. 9 deadline as it tries to balance concerns about vaping's strong appeal to teens with its potential to help adult smokers. What’s next: As part of its marketing orders, the FDA imposed strict digital, television and radio advertising restrictions for R.J. Reynolds to reduce youth exposure to the products. The agency also said R.J. Reynolds must provide regular updates on its product sales and consumer data. But the company isn’t out of the woods — Vuse is one of the largest e-cigarette companies in the market and has wide appeal to teenagers. A federal study released last month found that roughly one in 10 high school students who vape named Vuse as their preferred brand. “We’re troubled that a company with Reynolds' history now has the ability to market these products in the United States,” said Erika Sward, the assistant vice president of National Advocacy for the American Lung Association. DIVIDED SCOTUS CONSIDERS ABORTION QUESTION — The highest court on Tuesday weighed which state officials can defend abortion bans in court — a procedural question with implications that extend beyond reproductive health in states where the governor and attorney general hail from opposing parties, POLITICO’s Alice Miranda Ollstein writes. Cameron v. EMW Women’s Surgical Center marks the first abortion case to be argued in full before the court's 6–3 conservative majority. It centers on whether Republican Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron can defend his state’s ban on some forms of abortion after two courts found it unconstitutional and Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear refused to defend it further. A decision, expected next summer, could extend beyond abortion to Covid mandates, gun control laws and even election results. The deliberations also come as the high court prepares to hear a case in December over Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban. And ongoing challenges to Texas’ six-week abortion ban could swing the issue back to the Supreme Court. With Congress unlikely to pass a law to protect abortion rights and dozens of conservative states moving quickly to pass many forms of restrictions on the procedure, the court’s rulings this term will decide when, where and how people can terminate a pregnancy, Alice writes. | 
