Author: News Room

Earlier this year, a family member had a screening colonoscopy. He’d seen the news stories about the Affordable Care Act mandating no out-of-pocket costs, such as co-pays or a deductible. So if this test is supposed to be “free,” why did he get a bill? This isn’t the first time I’ve heard of people receiving bills for this procedure. (Full disclosure: That even happened to me.) Medicare covers a colonoscopy with no Part B deductible, copayment, or coinsurance when the test is done for screening: Once every 2 years for those at high risk Once every 10 years for those…

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Jeff Bezos has made his first public comments since a leadership crisis shook The Washington Post, telling the newspaper’s senior staff that its business practices needed to change but its journalistic standards would remain high. The billionaire founder of Amazon issued a memo on Tuesday, a copy of which was obtained by the Financial Times, in response to a growing backlash against Will Lewis, the chief executive he picked to turn around the lossmaking Washington publication. Bezos sent the memo via an…

Investment Thesis Invesco KBW Premium Yield Equity REIT ETF (NASDAQ:KBWY) is a strong sell due to the unsustainability of its high dividend yield and the quality of the REIT holdings contained within the fund. These negative factors have historically resulted in a considerable decline in share price and will continue to pressure the fund lower. Alternatively, I favor Vanguard’s VNQ fund due to its more sustainable dividend yield, higher quality REIT holdings, and relatively low expense ratio. KBWY Overview and Compared ETFs KBWY is a passive exchange-traded fund that seeks to track the KBW Nasdaq Premium Yield Equity REIT Index.…

Our goal here at Credible Operations, Inc., NMLS Number 1681276, referred to as “Credible” below, is to give you the tools and confidence you need to improve your finances. Although we do promote products from our partner lenders who compensate us for our services, all opinions are our own. The interest rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is 6.875% as of June 10, which is 0.250 percentage points higher than on Friday. Additionally, the interest rate on a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage is 6.125%, which is 0.135 percentage points higher than on Friday.  With mortgage rates changing daily, it’s a good…

Medicare Advantage plans are popular. They’re estimated to have enrolled more than half of Medicare beneficiaries for the first time in 2024. But changes are underway. Those enrolled in Advantage plans or considering them need to pay careful attention when evaluating plans in this fall’s open enrollment season. There could be significant modifications to existing Advantage plans. Medicare Advantage plans are popular because for relatively healthy beneficiaries out-of-pocket costs usually are lower than for a package of original Medicare coupled with Medicare supplement insurance and Part D prescription drug insurance. Advantage plans also offer benefits not available in original Medicare.…

New Jersey Democratic power broker George Norcross was charged Monday with racketeering and other crimes in connection with a waterfront redevelopment and the use of government-issued tax credits. At a news conference in Trenton, New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin accused Norcross, a former Democratic National Committee member and onetime head of the Camden County Democratic Party, of leading a criminal enterprise. Five alleged co-conspirators were also indicted. Michael Critchley, Norcross’ attorney, called the indictment a political vendetta. “What they did is they relied on some political adversaries” and that “resulted in this tortured and unfair prosecution,” Critchley said. The…

Apple has scrapped its “buy now, pay later” service, Apple Pay Later, which it launched in the US only last year, marking a retreat in the iPhone maker’s ambitions to become a major provider of traditional financial services. The tech giant says it is pivoting to a new instalment loans service offered through third-party credit and debit cards.“With the introduction of this new global instalment loan offering, we will no longer offer Apple Pay Later in the US,” Apple said on Monday. Users with open loans through Apple Pay Later will continue to have access to features, but no new loans…

Introduction First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FGBI) is a small regional bank that has taken its share of hits related to the deposit struggles and higher interest rates facing its industry. Last year, I analyzed the bank and discussed why I would not be taking a position in either the common or preferred shares. After three quarters of new data, I revisited the bank’s financials, and determined that the situation had improved enough to take a small position in the preferred shares, but I am still avoiding the First Guaranty Bancshares common shares despite their trading near a 52-week low. First…

Taking care of Fido is getting out of reach for more Americans. Nationwide Pet, the country’s largest provider of pet insurance, says it is dropping about 100,000 policies between now and next summer to keep up with spiraling costs in vet care. The move comes as other types of insurance, from homeowners to vehicles, are increasingly becoming harder to obtain for many Americans. “Inflation in the cost of veterinary care and other factors have led to recent underwriting changes and the withdrawal of some products in some states — difficult actions that are necessary to ensure a financially sustainable future…

Every weekday, the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer releases the Homestretch — an actionable afternoon update, just in time for the last hour of trading on Wall Street. Markets rally: The gains on Wall Street picked up steam midafternoon Monday, putting the S & P 500 on track for another record close. The tech-heavy Nasdaq is on pace for its sixth all-time high in a row. Strong advances in technology stocks like Club holdings Nvidia , Apple and Broadcom were the dominant theme in last week’s trading. The latter two extended their recent gains Monday session while Nvidia was…