Did Your Family Experience a Death Due to COVID-19?
You can apply to get paid back for funeral and cemetery expenses you’ve already paid for, in addition to items you might still want to purchase to memorialize your loved one. Sunset can help.
FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) is providing financial assistance for COVID-19 related funeral and cemetery expenses: up to $9,000 per person and $35,000 per family.
All you need to do is call FEMA and fill out an application. While we cannot apply on your behalf, Sunset can help you with the application process, even if you didn’t use us for the service. Call us at 812-477-5316 for help applying, or fill out the form below.
What Expenses Are Covered?
Expenses for funeral services and interment or cremation typically include, but are not limited to:
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Transportation for up to two individuals to identify the deceased individual
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Transfer of remains
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Casket or urn
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Burial plot or cremation niche
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Marker or headstone
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Clergy or officiant services
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Arrangement of the funeral ceremony
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Use of funeral home equipment or staff
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Cremation or interment costs
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Costs associated with producing and certifying multiple death certificates
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Additional expenses mandated by any applicable local or state government laws or ordinances
Shown above are just a few of the items eligible for reimbursement by FEMA due to a COVID-19 death, including a casket and burial, a marker, an urn, and a glass front niche.
What If We Didn't Have A Service? Can We Have a Funeral Service Now And Be Reimbursed?
Yes. If you didn’t have a funeral service at the time the death occurred, but wish to have one now, you are eligible to be reimbursed by FEMA.
According to FEMA’s website, to be eligible for reimbursement, you’ll need to provide documentation of funeral expenses incurred after January 20, 2020, for a death attributed to COVID-19.
If you’ve already paid for some funeral or cemetery expenses, and you are planning to purchase additional items (such as a headstone, a cremation niche, or you want to have a funeral or memorial service, for example), be sure to apply for COVID-Funeral Assistance after all funeral expenses are incurred.
Memorial or funeral services can be reimbursed, in addition to the cost of a casket or urn. Shown here: Sunset’s Lakeside Pavilion.
The cost of cremation, urns, niches, and cremation boulders, are eligible.
Keepsake urns, as well as keepsake jewelry in addition to the cost of interment and other services, may also be included for reimbursement.
