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The Biden administration is restoring California’s authority to set its own tailpipe pollution standards for cars, reversing a Trump administration policy and likely ushering in stricter emissions standards for new passenger vehicles nationwide. A waiver approved Wednesday by the Environmental Protection Agency allows California to set tough emissions rules for cars and SUVs and impose mandates for so-called zero-emission vehicles that do not contribute to global warming. (Daly, 3/9)

California got the go-ahead on Wednesday to set emissions standards for cars and trucks that are stricter than the federal government’s, positioning the state to again lead the country on the issue of vehicle pollution and climate change. The green light given to the state by the Environmental Protection Agency marks an about-face from 2019, when the agency under President Donald Trump revoked California’s power to independently regulate tailpipe emissions and mandate the sale of zero-emissions vehicles. The EPA said at the time it wanted a uniform national policy. (Alexander, 3/9)

President Joe Biden announced Wednesday he is nominating veteran health administrator Roselyn Tso to oversee the federal agency that delivers health care to more than 2.5 million Native Americans and Alaska Natives. The selection of Tso to lead the Indian Health Services comes amid a push from tribal health advocates for stability in the agency. Acting directors have filled the role for years at the agency that’s chronically underfunded and struggles to meet the needs of Indian Country. (Fonseca, 3/9)

The Biden administration plans to close two of the Veterans Administration hospitals in New York City — in Brooklyn and Manhattan, The Post has learned. The VA would close those two hospitals and contract with private medical providers as part of a “strategic collaboration” to treat vets. The plan sparked immediate rebuke from Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-Staten Island). “Me and the veterans I represent are mad as hell, and we will not allow the Biden administration to close these facilities,” Malliotakis told The Post. (Campanile and Levin, 3/9)

A Virginia start-up that won up to $812 million in federal money, under an early pandemic push by President Donald Trump’s White House to solve drug shortages and create emergency stockpiles by bolstering manufacturing on American soil, is rolling out its first products. The wrinkle: Some if not all of the drugs contain active ingredients made overseas, a dependency that highlights the real-world difficulties of Phlow’s promise to restore domestic production by building manufacturing capacity. (Rowland, 3/9)