Families who have lost a loved one to COVID-19 in the United States may claim federal aid of up to $ 7,000 to cover funeral expenses, as announced Monday by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schummer and the congresswoman New York Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Democrats said it is a $ 2 billion fund from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and that it was already included in the economic stimulus package approved by Congress in December.
The money is to "help people who are victims of COVID and do not have the dollars to pay for the funeral and burial of their loved ones," Schumer said Monday. "Due to the virus, many of these families
do not have money for a proper funeral and burial.
And that's just horrible and inhuman. "
Affected families will be able to apply for the aid retroactively, as the program covers those funerals and burials that took place
from January 20, 2020 to December 31, 2020.
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Schummer and Ocasio-Cortez said they will seek to extend the eligibility period until the pandemic ends, which will occur only after the American population achieves herd immunity.
The country's leading health experts have said that this requires immunizing around 80% of the total population.
As of this week,
just 10 million of the nearly 330 living in the United States have completed immunization.
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"When you suddenly lose a loved one, we are talking about a $ 4, 5, 7, 10,000 expense," said Ocasio-Cortez, who also spoke of her personal experience with the exorbitant funeral expenses of her deceased family members.
"I lost my dad when I was around 18 years old. And
the funeral expenses harassed and persecuted my family
, along with many other families in a similar position, for years," he added.
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The congresswoman also said that undocumented people will also be able to claim the funds and assured that they should not be afraid to claim them.
"I think it's completely understandable why they have that fear, especially during the last four years in which our immigrant families were attacked. But I think now our families, especially under the Biden Administration, a Democratic Senate and a House (of Representatives ) Democrat who is prioritizing the rights of immigrants, including the undocumented, do not have to be afraid or allow that fear to further marginalize our community, "he said.
Before reimbursing them for funeral costs, the assistance program will require family members to fill out an application and
provide invoices to prove those expenses they incurred, as well as a death certificate.
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There is still no website to fill out the applications, but the program is expected to be fully operational in a couple of months.
There will also be a
1-800
number
with service in multiple languages
to assist applicants with the process.
Almost 465,000 people have died from COVID-19 in the United States, the leading country in infections in the world, with more than 27 million infected.
The nation's top health authority, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, forecasts that an average of 11,300 to 22,600 others will die in the remainder of February alone.
With information from CNN and The Hill