VA says disability claims took 75.6 days to decide in September, down from 141.5 days on January 20, 2025
The Department of Veterans Affairs says it decided the average disability claim in 75.6 days in September 2026, compared with 141.5 days on January 20, 2025. That is a drop of 65.9 days. VA also reports that it processed more than 3 million disability claims in fiscal 2026 as of September 18, already past the […]
Read MoreVA says disability claims took 75.6 days to decide in September, down from 141.5 days on January 20, 2025
The Department of Veterans Affairs says it decided the average disability claim in 75.6 days in September 2026, compared with 141.5 days on January 20, 2025. That is a drop of 65.9 days. VA also reports that it processed more than 3 million disability claims in fiscal 2026 as of September 18, already past the […]
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myVEGAS and Pop! Slots players who spent money in six states get game coins unless they elect cash by October 21
Players of myVEGAS and Pop! Slots who spent money in six states will be paid in game coins unless they…
Personal Finance
Smart Spending
myVEGAS and Pop! Slots players who spent money in six states get game coins unless they elect cash by October 21
Players of myVEGAS and Pop! Slots who spent money in six states will be paid in game coins unless they…
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Fraud & Scams
Innovative Renal Care’s $900,000 data breach settlement offers an estimated $100 cash payment, with claims due December 21
A $900,000 fund is waiting on claims from people caught in a 2024 data breach at Innovative Renal Care, a kidney-care company based in Franklin,...
Fraud & Scams
Georgia Power says hackers got into its customer portal and exposed names and the last four digits of Social Security numbers, and it is offering free Equifax monitoring
About 300,000 of Georgia Power’s 2.8 million customers had personal details exposed after hackers got into the utility’s online customer portal, the company said October...
Loans & Lending
Fannie Mae says a tenant’s statutory first-refusal right won’t make a loan ineligible
A tenant’s right of first refusal does not make a mortgage ineligible for sale to Fannie Mae when the right comes from a statute or...
Credit Cards & Rewards
Chase’s IHG Premier card now carries a $150 annual fee for new applicants, existing cardholders pay it at their 2027 renewal, and welcome offers end November 18
Chase’s IHG One Rewards Premier credit card now carries a $150 annual fee for new applicants, up from $99, and existing cardholders will pay the...
Fraud & Scams
The FTC sued Digital Forensics Corp. and CEO Dmitry Belkin, alleging the firm charged sextortion victims $1,499 to $20,000 each and took in at least $60 million
The Federal Trade Commission says a company that promised to stop sextortion threats took at least $60 million from people already in crisis. The agency...
Bank Accounts & Fees
The CFPB says it will investigate nine big banks, including Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo, over debanking the OCC uncovered, under President Trump’s fair-banking order
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said on October 14 that it will investigate whether the nine largest national banks broke federal consumer-finance law in how...
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Zillow puts the typical U.S. home value at $366,913 in its September report
The monthly payment on the typical American home rose 6.7 percent over the past year, nearly seven times as fast…
Retirement & Taxes
A FERS retiree under 62 with Blue Cross Standard Self Plus One coverage will lose about $1,014 next year, as premiums rise with no COLA, Federal Pension Advisors estimates
VA disability checks follow Social Security’s new raise only if Congress passes the annual veterans COLA bill, S. 4487, listed as introduced in its official summary
It takes $1,970 of covered earnings to earn one Social Security credit in 2027, the agency’s actuarial table shows
Earnings up to $192,300 will be subject to the Social Security payroll tax in 2027, the cap announced alongside the new cost-of-living raise
Average Medicare Advantage premiums fall to $3.98 in South Carolina, $4.08 in Mississippi and $4.24 in Missouri for 2027, CMS state fact sheets show
Federal retirees under CSRS get the full 3.6% cost-of-living raise in January, while FERS retirees eligible for a COLA get 2.6%
September’s CPI-W index of 330.654 was the last reading in the third-quarter average behind Social Security’s 2027 cost-of-living raise
Military retirees see their 2027 cost-of-living raise starting with the December 31 retired-pay deposit, the same increase Social Security announced October 14
Postal retirees’ 2027 PSHB health coverage changes take effect January 1, with the government paying at most $689.50 a month toward self-only coverage
Federal retirees can switch health plans from November 9 to December 14, as the total 2027 FEHB premium for self-only coverage averages $1,059.39 a month
The IRS moved federal tax deadlines to February 8, 2027 in 27 counties hit by Hurricane Isaias, past October 15, though not for 2025 balances due April 15
Wyoming will have 8 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027, down from 14, while Montana falls from 32 to 23 and Minnesota from 68 to 53, CMS state fact sheets show
Beneficiaries who open a my Social Security account by November 18 can read their 2027 COLA notice online in late November, up to three weeks before mailed letters
SSI’s federal payment rises to $1,029 a month for an individual and $1,544 for a couple, and the first larger deposit arrives December 31
Social Security’s 3.6% raise for 2027 reaches about 76 million people, with SSI’s increase arriving December 31 and Social Security’s with January benefits
Prosecutors say a Tucson man kept $104,013 in Social Security payments sent to his late mother’s account