Special to Iredell Free News

With the implementation of FEMA’s COVID-19 funeral assistance application process, Nicholson Funeral Home is offering its assistance to the families it served after January 20, 2020, who may be eligible to apply for a reimbursement.

Any family who paid funeral expenses for a loved one whose cause of death was determined to be “COVID related” could be eligible to apply for a reimbursement as long as the expenses were incurred after January 20, 2020.

Nicholson Funeral Home staff will sit down with interested families to:

• Answer questions about the process and what expenses are eligible for reimbursement;
• Gather the necessary expense documentation;
• Provide resources and links to additional information; and
• Offer support throughout the process

“We want to help our families in every way possible – before, during, and after the funeral,” said Bill Brater, president of Nicholson Funeral Home. “Now that families are able to apply for reimbursement for COVID-19 related deaths, we want to help those families through the application process so they can receive financial relief. We’re grateful to be able to help our families in this way.”

According to the FEMA website, families can submit multiple applications, if there was more than one COVID-19 related death in the family. The assistance is limited to a maximum financial amount of $9,000 per funeral and a maximum of $35,500 per application.

“We’d also like families to know that if they were unable to have a full service because of COVID restrictions at the time of their loved one’s death, they can plan that service now and still request reimbursement,” Brater added.

To learn more about FEMA’s COVID-19 funeral assistance program and application process, you can either contact FEMA directly at 844-684-6333 (TTY: 800-462-7585), call Nicholson Funeral Home at (704) 872-5287, or go to www.fema.gov/disasters/coronavirus/economic/funeral-assistance.