If the program isn't reauthorized by Congress, major elements could disappear

• The flood insurance program faces a Sept. 30 deadline. Major elements can disappear without Congressional action.
• Participation in the program is already extremely low and sinking fast because of rising premiums.
• Many homes that flood repeatedly drive up a big share of the program's costs.

If Congress does not reauthorize the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) by September 30, major parts of the program will expirea lapse that could cause major problems in the mortgage industry.

In past NFIP lapses, borrowers were not able to purchase flood insurance to close, renew or increase loans secured by property that required flood insurance. The Congressional Research Service (CRS) estimated that during a lapse in June 2010, each day more than 1,400 home sale closings were canceled or delayed. That represents more than 40,000 sales each month.

This is an urgent pocketbook issue for many in our state," said Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ). He and other lawmakers have been looking for a long-term solution to funding the program but their efforts have failed so far.The House has passed. H.R. 5371, legislation that would fund much of the governmentand reauthorize the NFIP until Nov. 21. However, the Senate has rejected that legislation.

Lawmakers are considering lowering caps to annual premium increases, allowing policyholders to pay monthly premiums rather than annual ones, and higher coverage limits for flood damage, among other changes.

Participation low and declining fast

Just 3.3% of U.S. homes had active National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) policies as of Nov. 2024, marking a second-year of declines and a 0.2% drop from the prior year, according to a report frominsurance website ValuePenguin.

NFIP policies account for the vast majority of flood insurance and provides thebasics, but a smaller share of homeshave private flood insurance that can offerbroader coverage.

"Two years of back-to-back decreases in active flood insurance policies indicates that many homeowners arent fully aware of the growing risks of flooding," said Divya Sangameshwar, ValuePenguin's insurance expert, in the report.

The situation is even worse in 26 states where fewerthan 1% of homes have flood insurance, including Pennsylvania, Colorado and Michigan.

Efforts to find long-term financing fail

If the NFIP is allowed to lapse, the CRS has said that flood insurance contracts entered into before the expiration would continue until the end of their policy term of one year. The authority for the NFIP to borrow funds from the U.S. Treasury would be reduced from $30.425 billion to $1 billion.

Despite repeated efforts, Congress has been unable to enact a long-term NFIP reauthorization. Traditionally, the NFIP has been reauthorized in must-pass short-term and long-term spending measures. The CRS said that the NFIP has been reauthorized in such legislation 33 times since 2017. The last long-term reauthorization was the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012.

Fast-rising premiums

Under current law, National Flood Insurance premiums can increase by no more than 18% a year. Some lawmakers have suggestedreducing that capto 9%.

The National Flood Insurance Program is distressed by premiums driven by a small share of extremely high-risk properties that repeatedly flood.

As premiums rise, more policyholders move to private plans or forgo flood insurance because they can no longer afford it. Smaller subscriber pools inflate risk and drive up premiums, pushing more policyholders away in a vicious cycle not unlike the one faced byNew Jerseys State Health Benefits Programfor local government workers.

U.S. will take six of seven board seats and Oracle will take control of the site's algorithm

• White House says US companies will oversee TikToks algorithm and Americans will hold six of seven board seats for US operations.

• Oracle, chaired by Trump ally Larry Ellison, will lead data and privacy protections.

• Trump and Xi discussed TikToks future, but Beijing has not confirmed approval of the deal.

White House signals breakthrough in talks

The White House announced over the weekend that US companies will take control of TikToks algorithm and that six of seven board seats in the apps US operations will be held by Americans. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said a deal could be signed in the coming days, though Chinese officials have yet to comment publicly.

Speaking on the Fox News program Saturday in America, Ms. Leavitt said that we are 100 percent confident that a deal is done, but added in the same breath that the deal had not yet been signed, the New York Times reported.She said that could happen in the coming days.

The move follows years of negotiations over whether TikTok could continue to operate in the United States amid concerns over its Chinese parent company, ByteDance. The app had previously faced the threat of a ban unless its US business was sold.

Oracle to oversee data and privacy

Leavitt saidthat US tech giant Oracle will lead TikToks US data and privacy safeguards. Oracles founder and chair, Larry Ellisonlong a political ally of President Trumpwill play a central role.

The data and privacy will be led by one of Americas greatest tech companies, Oracle, and the algorithm will also be controlled by America as well, Leavitt told Fox News. She added that all of those details have already been agreed upon, with only a final signature needed to seal the deal.

The Ellison family has gained growing influence in US media, with Larry Ellisons son, David, recently acquiring Paramount, owner of CBS News.

Mixed signals from China

President Trump said he and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed TikTok in a phone call and both approved the deal. He described the exchange as productive in a Truth Social post.

But Beijings response has been less clear. Chinas Commerce Ministry said it welcomed negotiations in accordance with market rules and emphasized that any solution must comply with Chinese law. State news agency Xinhua quoted Xi as welcoming talks, without confirming a final agreement, according to aBBC report.

Dispute over the algorithm

A major sticking point in negotiations has been who controls TikToks powerful recommendation algorithm, which shapes content for its 170 million American users. While Trump sidestepped questions about whether a new algorithm would be needed, the White House has now insisted that control will rest firmly in US hands.

Legal and political backdrop

In January, the US Supreme Court upheld a 2024 law banning TikTok unless ByteDance divested from its US operations. The app briefly went offline before the deadline was pushed back. Trump, who initially called for TikTok to be banned during his first term, shifted course in 2024 and embraced the platform to reach younger voters in his presidential campaign.

The Justice Department has previously warned that TikTok posed a national security threat of immense depth and scale, citing concerns about user data access.

Home-schoolers and MAGA acherents more likely to reject vaccines

By Truman Lewis of ConsumerAffairs

A new study examines whether smartphone use on the toilet is linked to more hemorrhoids and longer sit-times

• About two-thirds of people in the study used their smartphones while sitting on the toilet, and those users were much more likely to stay there for over five minutes.

• After adjusting for age, sex, BMI, fiber intake, exercise, and straining, smartphone toilet-use was associated with a ~46% higher chance of having hemorrhoids.

• There were no major differences in constipation or frequency of straining between phone-users and non-users, suggesting that the extra sitting time (not straining) may be the link.

If you find yourself scrolling, checking social media, or catching up on news while sitting on the toilet, youre far from alone. But could that habit be doing more than just eating up your time?

A recent study conducted at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center raises the possibility that using a smartphone during bathroom visits may increase the risk of developing hemorrhoids.

Hemorrhoids are common, uncomfortable, and costly in terms of health care. While things like constipation, low-fiber diets, and pregnancy are established risk factors, researchers wanted to explore whether this modern habit of toilet scrolling also plays a role.

I was struck by this fantastic old study from 1989 in The Lancet on hemorrhoids and reading the newspaper on the toilet, researcher Dr. Trisha Pasricha said in a news release. They looked at how many patients read the newspaper on the toilet and then doctors had a look to see how many of them had hemorrhoids.

But that study did find that there was this association. More hemorrhoids were found amongst people who spent time reading on the toilet. Now in 2025, I don't think anyone's reading the newspaper, but we know everybody's on their phones in the bathroom. So I thought we needed to update this literature for the modern TikTok era.

The study

The study recruited 125 adults who were undergoing routine screening colonoscopies. Before their procedures, participants filled out detailed surveys about their demographics (age, sex, BMI), lifestyle (diet, physical activity), and specific bathroom behaviors: how often they used a phone while on the toilet, how long they stayed, and what they did with their phones (e.g. read news or use social media).

Doctors then checked for hemorrhoids during the colonoscopies. To ensure fairness and reduce bias, two independent endoscopists reviewed a subset of high-quality images to confirm internal hemorrhoids.

The analysis included adjusting for known risk factors like fiber intake, straining, exercise, etc., so the researchers could assess whether phone use was associated with hemorrhoids independent of those factors.

The results

Heres what they found:

• Prevalence of phone use: Roughly 66% of the participants reported using smartphones while on the toilet.

• Longer sit times: Among phone users, 37.3% stayed more than five minutes per toilet visit, compared with only 7.1% of non-users.

• Increased risk: After controlling for other factors, use of a smartphone on the toilet was associated with a 46% increased odds of having hemorrhoids.

• No difference in straining or constipation: The groups did not differ significantly in their reports of straining, constipation, or related gastrointestinal symptoms, suggesting that the extra sitting time may be the key factor.

• Demographics: Smartphone-users were younger on average ( 55 years) than non-users ( 62 years). Also, phone users had lower weekly physical activity.

What we can take away

The study doesnt prove cause and effect it can't show that phones cause hemorrhoids but it does suggest a strong association. If nothing else, it raises a simple habit-change possibility.

My colleagues and I in GI, we all tell our patients not to spend longer than a couple minutes on the toilet, Dr. Pasricha said.

I think whats happening is that time sort of slows down when youre scrolling, and people dont realize just how much longer theyre sitting there.

The food giant is cutting high fructose corn syrup and other additives from U.S. products by 2025

• Tyson Foods will stop using high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), sucralose, BHA/BHT, and titanium dioxide in its branded U.S. products by the end of 2025.

• These changes affect major brands like Tyson, Jimmy Dean, Hillshire Farm, Wright,State Fair, Aidells, and ibp.

• All of the ingredients being removed are currently approved by the FDA and considered safe, but Tyson says this move reflects changing consumer expectations and their own values.

Tyson Foods is making a voluntary change: by the end of 2025, it will eliminate four specific ingredients high fructose corn syrup, sucralose (a sweetener), BHA/BHT (preservatives), and titanium dioxide (a coloring agent) from its branded product lines in the U.S.

These ingredients are already FDA-approved and safe to use. The company isnt reacting to a safety mandate theyre responding to what consumers seem to want more of: simpler ingredient lists, fewer additives, and more transparency.

We continuously review and assess our product portfolio to ensure the highest quality products that meet the needs of consumers, Donnie King, President & CEO of Tyson Foods, said in a news release.

Our decision to remove high fructose corn syrup and other ingredients reflects our ongoing commitment to feeding the world like family, while preserving the taste, value and integrity that define our iconic brands.

Brands & products affected

Youll see the shift in a lot of the familiar names: Tyson, Jimmy Dean, Hillshire Farm, Wright, State Fair, Aidells, ibp, and others.

Earlier this year, Tyson also removed synthetic dyes from its domestic branded products. So this is part of an ongoing trend for them.

What this might mean for you

• Taste & price: Tyson says they aim to preserve the taste, value, and integrity of their products even with these changes.

• Ingredient labels: Going forward, youll see different ingredient lists expect to see substitutes or natural alternatives in place of whats being removed.

• Choice & transparency: If youve been avoiding these additives or want cleaner labels, this change gives you more options in familiar brands.