FEMA was overwhelmed with first-day calls to request $ 9,000 for Covid-19 funeral expenses

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The agency launched a hotline – 844-684-6333 – Monday to request up to $ 9,000 in aid per funeral.

While FEMA has helped families with disaster-related funeral expenses in the past, the Covid-19 effort is the largest of its kind. About $ 2 billion was allocated as part of the $ 900 billion relief deal that Congress approved in December, while the Democrats’ $ 1.9 trillion package last month backed it up by giving the agency an additional $ 50 billion for costs in related to the coronavirus.

The program’s debut was marked by busy signals and “technical issues,” the agency said Monday, noting that it had received “thousands of phone calls” on its first working day.

“We ask applicants to be patient as we work to resolve these issues and have all their important documents ready when they call to apply,” said FEMA. “Keep in mind that there is no deadline to apply and applicants will have the option to open a case.”

While the agency has “provided assistance with funeral services in disasters, we have never done anything on this scale or magnitude,” Acting Administrator Robert Fenton told Congress last month.

Due to the sensitive nature of the program, FEMA chose to apply by phone rather than online.
“Right now, we focus on empathy when we talk about individuals who have lost loved ones. We want to make sure we do this in an empathetic way,” said Fenton. “We think, again, with empathy as a priority, we want to be able to manage business and have that human-to-human interaction while doing this.”

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To be eligible, the death must have occurred in the US or its territories, and funeral expenses must have been incurred after January 20, 2020. The death certificate must state that the death was attributed to or likely caused by Covid-19 or coronavirus-like symptoms.

While the applicant must be a U.S. citizen or legal resident, there is no requirement that the deceased meet these criteria.

Expenses covered include the transfer of remains, burial field, coffin, clergy, cremation, and headstone. But the aid is reduced if the applicant has received benefits from funeral or funeral insurance or financial aid from other sources.

Pushed by New York lawmakers

Senate Leader Chuck Schumer and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, both New York Democrats, have been pushing for help since the pandemic began devastating their state in March 2020.

“We started fighting for funeral aid a year ago after Elmcor told us that families chose to bury their loved ones with dignity or pay rent,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted Monday, referring to a New York City-based nonprofit. Today, those families will finally start to see some relief. Thanks to @SenSchumer for working together in this effort.
In the US, more than 562,000 people have died from Covid-19.

This story has been updated with additional developments.

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