Easing COVID’s financial pain

It was more than a year ago, as COVID deaths climbed higher and higher, that the first-term member of Congress saw a pressing need of how sudden, unplanned funeral and burial costs were financially crushing Bronx and Queens families already struck with devastating human loss. So Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez connected with the senior senator and Democratic leader, Chuck Schumer, to try to bring some small measure of relief for suffering families, in New York and across the country.

It took the two of them a lot of work, and a lot of time, but next Monday, the phone lines open up to provide reimbursement for up to $9,000 for funeral expenses for loved ones taken by COVID. The toll-free number from FEMA, 844-684-6333, will be staffed Monday to Friday, from 9 to 9. But due to having to handle more than a half-million claims (there is no income cap and no deadline), applications must be submitted carefully to make sure that families can receive the full available benefit.

To qualify, death certificates must say that cause was connected to COVID, and while there will rightly be no questions asked about a deceased person’s immigration status, reimbursement can only be sought by citizens, Green Card holders and others with fully legal status. The exception is that a minor child cannot apply on behalf of an undocumented person. And FEMA will only allow a single application for each case at one time, with no supplements allows.

So, a word of advice to families: assemble all receipts and contracts before making the call to FEMA. If funeral costs were split by, say a surviving spouse and children or other relatives or friends, there must still only be a single application submitted. All the documentation detailing who paid what must be sent in to FEMA through the mail, fax or computer upload once the case file is established.

Yes, there are some bureaucratic hoops to jump through, but Ocasio-Cortez and Schumer did a great thing here.