How to get reimbursed for COVID 19 funeral expenses

Mueller Memorial • March 30, 2021

How to get reimbursed for COVID 19 funeral expenses

What is COVID-19 Funeral Assistance?

We’ve had several questions here at Mueller Memorial about FEMA reimbursing funeral expenses in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and wanted to let you know that it is true, this is happening.

Under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021 and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, FEMA will provide financial assistance for COVID-19-related funeral expenses incurred after January 20, 2020, in the amount of the actual funeral expenses, up to $9,000.

Members of our staff recently joined an informational call on this topic with Lesley Witter, Senior Vice President, Advocacy for the National Funeral Directors’ Association and FEMA’s Federal Coordinating Officer, Nancy Casper.

Below is Mueller Memorial Funeral and Cremation Services’ general summary of that information combined with additional information found on FEMA’s official website: https://www.fema.gov/disasters/coronavirus/economic/funeral-assistance

Who is Eligible?

In short, the applicant (survivor) must be a U.S. citizen, who has documentation that they paid for funeral services for someone who died after Jan 20 2020 with COVID-19 listed as either a primary or a contributing factor on the decedent’s death certificate.

There can generally be only one application and one payment per decedent. The person who applies must be able to prove that they paid for all or part of the services. There can also be one co-applicant.*(more below)

To be eligible for funeral assistance, you must meet these conditions:

The death must have occurred in the United States, including the U.S. territories, and the District of Columbia.
The death certificate must indicate the death was attributed to COVID-19 as a primary or contributing factor.
The applicant must be a U.S. citizen, non-citizen national, or qualified alien who incurred funeral expenses after January 20, 2020.
There is no requirement for the deceased person to have been a U.S. citizen, non-citizen national, or qualified alien.

What funeral expenses are covered?

COVID-19 Funeral Assistance will assist with expenses for funeral services and interment or cremation. Any receipts received for expenses that are not related to funeral services will not be determined eligible expenses. Expenses for funeral services and interment or cremation typically include, but are not limited to:

Transportation for up to two individuals to identify the deceased individual (not to travel to the funeral)
Transfer of remains
Casket or urn
Burial plot or cremation niche
Gravesite opening and closing fees
Marker or headstone
Clergy or officiant services
Arrangement of the funeral ceremony
Use of funeral home equipment or staff
Cremation or interment costs
Costs associated with producing and certifying multiple death certificates
Additional expenses mandated by any applicable local or state government laws or ordinances

It was suggested by Nancy Casper from FEMA that you wait to apply for assistance until you have all eligible receipts. So if you have yet to make a final purchase of a grave marker or headstone, or if you delayed hosting a service or Mass, wait until you incur and pay for those expenses before applying for assistance. Keeping in mind that applying for assistance does not guarantee you will receive it, in part or in full.

How to Apply

*****

YOU CAN ONLY APPLY BY PHONE AT:

COVID-19 Funeral Assistance Line Number

Applications began on April 12, 2021

844-684-6333 | TTY: 800-462-7585

Hours of Operation:

Monday - Friday

8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Central Time

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In April 2021, FEMA began accepting applications. There is currently no deadline for applications to be submitted and it sounds like it will be continuing through 2025. FEMA has set up a dedicated toll-free phone number that can be used to apply for funeral assistance. You will need to call 844-684-6333 to get an application completed with help from FEMA's representatives.

No online applications will be accepted.
Multilingual services are available and the TTY number is 800-462-7585

The only way to begin the application process is over the phone at 844-684-6333

Once an applicant has applied for COVID-19 Funeral Assistance and is provided an application number, they will provide supporting documentation to FEMA a few ways:

Upload to their DisasterAssistance.gov account (fastest)
Fax documents
Mail documents (slowest)

What Documents Do I Need?

If you had COVID-19 funeral expenses and plan to apply for assistance in April 2021, FEMA encourages you to keep and gather documentation. Types of information should include:

An official death certificate that attributes the death directly or indirectly to COVID-19 and shows that the death occurred in the United States, including the U.S. territories, and the District of Columbia.
Funeral expenses documents (receipts, funeral home contract, etc.) that includes:
o the applicant’s name
o the deceased person’s name
o the amount of funeral expenses
o the dates the funeral expenses happened
Mueller Memorial will provide the individual(s) who paid for the funeral expenses through us with documents meeting these requirements.
Proof of funds received from other sources specifically for use toward funeral costs. FEMA is not able to duplicate benefits received from burial or funeral insurance, financial assistance received from voluntary agencies, government agencies, county assistance, or other sources. (You do NOT need to report funds received from general life insurance which were not specifically assigned or designated to pay for funeral expenses.)

How are Funds Received

If you are eligible for funeral assistance you will receive a check by mail, or funds by direct deposit, depending on which option you choose when you apply for assistance.

What About Fraud?

The only way to begin the application process is by an applicant calling FEMA's phone number at 844-684-6333. FEMA will not call you first.

FEMA takes many actions to prevent fraud, but be aware that predatory criminals are already attempting to defraud survivors. Ways you can help avoid fraud:

Be very critical of anyone offering to help you. No one from FEMA will reach out offering to register you for funeral assistance, and FEMA will NOT contact people prior to them registering for assistance.
FEMA will not contact you via email before you register.
FEMA will not call you before you register.
There will be no online registration. You will register by phone and only submit documents online AFTER you’ve registered.
When looking for information online look for the fema.gov web address
Do not disclose information such as the name, birth date, or social security number of any deceased family member to any unsolicited telephone calls or e-mails from anyone claiming to be a federal employee or from FEMA.

The death certificate doesn’t attribute the death to COVID-19. How do I get a death certificate amended?

A funeral home or cremation provider has no control over what is listed as the cause of death on a death certificate.

If accurate and necessary, it is possible to change or amend a death certificate. This process starts with contacting the person who certified the death. This may be a treating doctor, a coroner or a medical examiner, and their name and address is on the death certificate. Applicants may present evidence to them to support the claim the death was attributable to COVID-19. This process cannot be initiated nor resolved by your funeral home.

* Someone else helped me pay for funeral expenses. Can they apply for COVID-19 Funeral Assistance?

FEMA will generally only provide COVID-19 Funeral Assistance to one applicant per deceased individual.

To be approved for reimbursement of funeral expenses due to a COVID-19 fatality, you must have incurred funeral expenses for the deceased individual and have documentation (receipts, funeral home contracts, etc.) showing your name as the responsible party.

We recognize that multiple individuals may have contributed to funeral expenses for one deceased individual. FEMA will work with applicants in these situations and those who submit multiple receipts for funeral expenses when their name does not appear on the receipt.

If more than one individual contributed toward funeral expenses, they must register with FEMA under the same application as the applicant and co-applicant, or the first applicant that submits all required documentation will be awarded COVID-19 Funeral Assistance for the deceased individual. No more than one co-applicant can be included on an application.

What is Mueller Memorial Doing?

We have gone through all files and receipts from Jan 20, 2020 through today and, to the best of our ability, prepared FEMA-conforming funeral expense documentation for families who experienced a death officially attributed to COVID-19. On April 9th 2020 we mailed those documents out to the people who paid for those COVID-related funeral expenses.

Mueller Memorial will, of course, not charge a fee for preparing this documentation and per FEMA regulation, no funeral home or cremation provider has the right to charge you for that.

We are aware that there are often different people within a family who; signed the contract, are recognized are the next of kin, or had power of attorney, etc. but FEMA’s position seems clear that the individual who paid for the services is the one eligible for financial assistance.

As a courtesy, we have proactively made our best effort to reach out to all the individuals who paid for services resulting from COVID-19. However, in any circumstance and especially if we do not have adequate contact information, it is entirely the responsibility of the person wishing to apply for funeral assistance to request funeral expense documentation from Mueller Memorial by calling us at 651-774-9797 or emailing us at info@muellermemorial.com

FEMA is very clear that funeral providers, including Mueller Memorial, are not allowed to apply for funeral expense reimbursement on a family’s behalf.