The COVID-19 pandemic has brought overwhelming grief to many families. Citizens in Escambia County who require funeral assistance due to COVID-19 can apply for FEMA's COVID-19 Funeral Assistance program. There is currently no deadline to apply for COVID-19 Funeral Assistance. The President approved funding for COVID-19-related funeral expenses incurred on or after Jan. 20, 2020, under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021 and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
To be eligible for funeral assistance, you must meet the following conditions:
- Must be a U.S. citizen, non-citizen national, or qualified alien who incurred funeral expenses on or after Jan. 20, 2020.
- For deaths that occurred after May 16, 2020, the death certificate must indicate the death was attributed to COVID-19.
- For deaths that occurred from Jan. 20 to May 16, 2020, any death certificate that does not attribute the cause of death to COVID-19 must be accompanied by a signed statement listing COVID-19 as a cause or contributing cause of death.
- The signed statement must be provided by the original certifier of the death certificate or the local medical examiner or coroner from the jurisdiction in which the death occurred.
- The statement must provide an additional explanation, or causal pathway, linking the cause of death listed on the death certificate to COVID-19.
- If the death certificate was issued May 17, 2020 or later, the death certificate must attribute the death directly or indirectly to COVID-19.
- FEMA encourages you to keep the official death certificate that shows the death occurred in the United States, including District of Columbia and the U.S. territories.
To apply for COVID-19 Funeral Assistance, call the helpline at 844-684-6333. The helpline is available Monday - Friday from 9 a.m. - 9 p.m., Eastern Time. Multilingual services will be available. Online applications are not accepted. If you use a relay service, such as your videophone, Innocaption or CapTel, please provide your specific number assigned to that service. It is important that FEMA is able to contact you, and you should be aware phone calls from FEMA may come from an unidentified number.
Visit here for more information about FEMA's COVID-19 Funeral Assistance Program. Find more COVID-19 resources in Escambia County here.
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FEMA’s mission: Helping people before, during, and after disasters.
