Every week we send retired veterans a short, plain-English brief on CRSC, retired pay, and the VA benefits news that actually affects your check — sourced, no hype, vet to vet. This is the public archive. Read any past issue below, and subscribe to get the next one in your inbox.
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Subscribe FreeNo October shutdown — a stopgap signed September 2 funds the government through December 11, and the last 2027 COLA reading lands October 14. Plus the order moving military records to VA from day one, and why your CRSC packet still needs records you pull yourself.
Read Issue 18 →VA announced the first-ever VGLI premium holiday — no premiums November 2026 through January 2027, averaging about $330 per enrollee, applied automatically. Plus VA’s record fiscal-year claims numbers, and the CRSC award that quietly stops keeping up with your VA ratings.
Read Issue 17 →Two of the three 2027 COLA readings are in and the third lands October 14. Plus why a VA rating proves service connection but not a combat nexus — and what to check in your decision letter this week.
Read Issue 16 →VA Form 21-526EZ went to OMB review this week, dropping from 15 pages to 5 with comments open until October 9. Plus why a shorter form never means less proof.
Read Issue 15 →A retroactive VA award may open a tax refund window most retirees have never heard of — plus the five-minute dependent check and why buddy statements can’t carry a CRSC packet.
Read Issue 14 →The CRDP/CRSC election math doesn't start with your rating letter — it starts with two lines on your Retiree Account Statement. Plus the comment window on the 5-page VA form just closed, and the kitchen-sink packet mistake that buries strong conditions under weak ones.
Read Issue 13 →One CRDP/CRSC election window a year and a six-month decision queue means August is the month that decides January. Plus the 21-526EZ is shrinking from 15 pages to 5 — and this week's money, one mistake, and one move.
Read Issue 12 →July CPI-W came in at 3.4% — one of three readings that set the 2027 COLA. Plus VA now rates you at your medicated level of function under the amended 38 CFR 4.10, and what that change means for re-exams.
Read Issue 11 →The adjustment that hits your check next January is being measured right now — and the first of the three readings lands August 12. Plus the PACT Act turns four on August 10, why a presumptive rating can matter more for CRSC than most retirees realize, and the packet mistake that trades records for statements.
Read Issue 10 →Headlines say “5 to 7 percent raise.” That raise is for active duty. Here's what the FY2027 NDAA actually means for retirees, what a July 13 hearing revealed about VA deciding more claims with fewer people, and the one rating-decision mistake that sinks CRSC packets.
Read Issue 9 →August 1 lands on a Saturday, so both checks move up to July 31. Meanwhile the Army is quietly re-reviewing burn-pit PEB cases under a settlement that feeds straight into CRSC — and a use-it-or-lose-it deadline hits August 1. Here's this week's money, one mistake, and one move.
Read Issue 8 →Cooling inflation trimmed next year's projected raise for retired pay, VA compensation, and CRSC — all in one report. Meanwhile the VA's claims backlog fell below 70,000 for the first time in six years. Here's this week's money, one mistake, and one move.
Read Issue 7 →The bill to end the "wounded veteran tax" got blocked in the Senate one more time — so the VA Waiver keeps quietly taking combat-injured retirees' pay, and CRSC stays the one tool that exists today. Plus a new Senate SMC bill, the 2027 COLA outlook, and the one CRSC mistake that leaves money on the table.
Read Issue 6 →Medically retired under 20 years? CRDP leaves you out — so the VA Waiver quietly takes your retired pay and nothing gives it back. CRSC is the door that's still open, with one honest limit. Plus: the "3.8% raise" that wasn't yours, the Richard Star Act's latest Senate block, and your family's Chapter 35 education benefit.
Read Issue 5 →A CRSC denial usually means the packet didn't prove it — not that you don't qualify. How to read a denial like the board does, what reconsideration actually takes, and the travel-reimbursement benefit most eligible vets never file.
Read Issue 4 →"Combat-related" isn't the same as "combat." Four categories qualify — and three of them need no deployment. Plus the PACT Act presumptive list, claims moving faster than ever, and the Hazlewood tuition benefit that transfers to your kid.
Read Issue 3 →The Supreme Court killed the six-year cap; then on May 14, 2026 DoD retracted the limits it had added. Where retroactive CRSC stands now — carefully, no hype — plus the burn-pit settlement and the Texas property-tax exemption.
Read Issue 2 →Bring your branch, retirement type, conditions, and rating breakdown. We'll tell you straight whether CRSC is worth filing — and what a strong packet would need to prove. No cost. No obligation.