Funeral Assistance Available for COVID-19 Deaths

It isn't a subject that many of us like to talk or think about: death. More often than not, the fear of death is actually worse than death itself, as the old saying goes. If you've ever experienced the death of a loved one, you know hoe difficult times can be. Depending on how "close" that loved one was to you, in terms of immediate family, you'll also understand how expensive taking care of last wishes and laying someone to rest can be. When it's time to say goodbye to a loved one, money is the last thing you want to get in the way of being able to put together a farewell that they deserve.

In the last year, over 550,000 Americans died of COVID-19.  The virus seriously attacked the entire globe. It shut down industries, events, social lives, and even divided families. Most significantly, the virus killed--hundreds of thousands of people--and it did not discriminate who.

As part of the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021 and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021-- the Federal Emergency Management Agency better known as FEMA will begin to accept applications to offer financial assistance to cover costs of funerals for those who left us due to COVID-19.

In order for the death to be eligible for financial assistance:

• The death certificate must indicate that the death was due to COVID-19
• The Applicant must be a U.S. Citizen who incurred funeral expenses AFTER January 20, 2020
• The death must have occurred in the United States-- including U.S. territories.

While this isn't the happiest of subjects that I have ever written about, I do think there's important and impactful information here. This virus took life away, unexpectedly, from families and communities and was socioeconomically deaf.

To learn more about submitting for financial assistance for a funeral that is upcoming or that may have already come and gone, click HERE.