Under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021 and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, FEMA is providing financial assistance for COVID-19 related funeral expenses incurred after January 20, 2020.

If you are applying for FEMA Funeral Assistance due to the death of a loved one from COVID-19, here’s what you may need from DOH:

• Ordering a long-form death certificate.
• You must provide FEMA a long-form death certificate. This is the only format that shows the cause of death. Please note, FEMA will not pay for the death certificate, you must pay for the certificate and submit the cost of the certificate with your application packet to FEMA to request reimbursement.
• Correcting cause of death on death certificates.
• If you do not see COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause of death* on the death certificate, you will need to contact the medical professional who certified the cause of death, and ask them to submit the correction on your behalf. Only the certifying physician, coroner, or medical examiner may submit an Affidavit for Correction. Once the correction is submitted and accepted, you will need to order the long-form death certificate for use with this federal program.

* For deaths that occurred between January 20, 2020 and May 16, 2020, any death certificate that does not attribute the death to COVID-19 must now be submitted with a signed statement (from the original certifier of the death certificate or the local medical examiner or coroner) that explains how the listed cause of death is linked to COVID-19. You can learn more about the updated policy here.

For full information on the FEMA program please visit COVID-19 Funeral Assistance | FEMA.gov.

To apply for the assistance, starting April 12, call 844-684-6333 | TTY: 800-462-7585 Monday – Friday 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Central Time.