Buster 10.9 why does apt -y update followed by apt -y upgrade not proceed with upgrades

[Keith Christian]

Looking on the www, some people recommend using apt-get -y upgrade or
apt-get -y install to avoid the following message:

                    "NNN packages can be upgraded. Run 'apt list
--upgradable' to see them."

Is "apt" unable to perform an "upgrade," or am I missing a command
line option (e.g. force?)

Thanks.