Those who have lost a loved one due to COVID-19 are now eligible to receive up to $9,000 in funeral expense reimbursements from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

These funds were made available under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, for COVID-19 deaths that incurred funeral expenses after January 20, 2020. Jones & Eden Funeral Home Director Marty Beenblossom says he has contacted all of the families he has worked with that may be eligible for this program, “I want to caution people, FEMA will never call an individual unless the individual has made contact with them first. So if somebody calls and is asking [for] personal information, social security number, date of birth, do not give that to anybody over the phone. I’m very fearful of people trying to take advantage of this via scams.”

All applications will be taken via a toll-free phone number during which an application number will be assigned. Beenblossom says his staff will then fax documentation of their client families’ funeral expenses to FEMA. There is no deadline to apply, and you can find more information by visiting here.