 TITLE: COVID-19 Funeral Assistance: How to Get Aid From FEMA CONTENT: What Funeral Assistance Does the Federal Government Provide?\n------------------------------------------------------------\nIn April 2021, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) began offering financial assistance for funeral expenses incurred after January 20, 2020, for the death of a loved one attributed to COVID-19. The money is designed to cover expenses associated with funeral services, cremation and burial.\nFEMA limits the assistance to $9,500 per funeral and $35,500 per application. In 2019, the National Funeral Directors Association pegged the median cost of a funeral with a burial and viewing at $7,640.\nItems eligible for assistance include:\n*   Transportation for up to two people to identify the deceased person\n*   Transfer of remains\n*   Casket or urn\n*   Burial plot or cremation niche\n*   Marker or headstone\n*   Clergy or officiant services\n*   Arrangement of funeral ceremony\n*   Use of funeral home equipment or staff\n*   Cremation or burial costs\n*   Costs for producing and certifying death certificates END