WASHINGTON — Hundreds of thousands of American families have been forced to grieve through the pandemic. Does the government have plans to step in to help with funeral costs?
QUESTION:
Is FEMA paying funeral expenses for people who died from COVID-19?
ANSWER:
There is a plan to pay for funerals and reimburse funerals that already took place.
SOURCES:
- The Federal Emergency Management Agency
- Elizabeth Zimmerman, the former FEMA associate administrator for the Office of Response and Recovery.
PROCESS:
“FEMA, through their individual assistance program has the ability to pay for funeral expenses,” Elizabeth Zimmerman said.
According to Zimmerman, FEMA can pay for funerals after a president declares a disaster.
“Typically, funeral expenses are covered on a cost-share basis,” she said. “So, FEMA would pay 75%, and the states would be responsible for 25%.”
Former President Trump already declared the pandemic a disaster in 2020. But it wasn’t until this week, Congress gave FEMA $2 billion to pay for funerals.
“This new policy, and the authorities that Congress gave to FEMA, in order to pay 100% of the cost for the funeral expenses,” she said.
As a result, FEMA will pay up to $9,000 for funeral expenses per deceased individual. This includes families that already buried loved ones in 2020. They can get reimbursed.
The program will start next month.
“Basically, a claim will have a death certificate,” Zimmerman said. “The death certificate must say that cause caused by or related to COVID.
What if the $2 billion runs out?
Zimmerman said Congress set aside $50 billion to replenish FEMA’s disaster accounts. The agency would then tap into that.