Coronavirus Update

Please follow these preventative measures as recommended by the CDC:

• The CDC recommends using N95 face mask coverings while inside to help slow the spread of COVID-19. Click here for more information about the CDC’s guidance on face coverings.

• Public health experts and the CDC recommend that Americans use at-home tests if they begin to have symptoms, at least five days after coming in close contact with someone who has COVID-19, or are gathering indoors with a group of people who are at risk of severe disease or unvaccinated.

• As part of the Biden Administration's strategy to make tests more accessible, Americans are now able to order free at-home COVID-19 tests for every household.

• The rapid at-home tests can be ordered on the website COVIDtests.gov, where you just need to enter your name and address. For those who can't access the website or need assistance, please call 1-800-232-0233 (TTY 1-888-720-7489) to get help in English, Spanish or more than 150 other languages, from 8 a.m. to midnight ET 7 days a week.

The Massachusetts “Stop the Spread” initiative allows for residents to receive a free COVID-19 test at several locations across the Commonwealth. For more information about locations, facility hours of operation, and to make an appointment, visit their website by clicking here.

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 on or after January 20, 2020.

To be eligible for COVID-19 funeral assistance, the policy states:

• The applicant must be a U.S. citizen, non-citizen national, or qualified alien who incurred funeral expenses after Jan. 20, 2020 for a death attributed to COVID-19.
  
  
• If multiple individuals contributed toward funeral expenses, they should apply under a single application as applicant and co-applicant. FEMA will also consider documentation from other individuals not listed as the applicant and co-applicant who may have incurred funeral expenses as part of the registration for the deceased individual.
  
  
• An applicant may apply for multiple deceased individuals.
  
  
• The COVID-19-related death must have occurred in the United States, including the U.S. territories and the District of Columbia.
  
  
• This assistance is limited to a maximum financial amount of $9,000 per funeral and a maximum of $35,500 per application.
  
  
• Funeral assistance is intended to assist with expenses for funeral services and interment or cremation.

Required Documents

• Official death certificate that shows the death occurred in the United States, including the U.S. territories and District of Columbia.

• If the death certificate was issued between Jan. 20 and May 16, 2020, it must either 1) attribute the death directly or indirectly to COVID-19 or 2) be accompanied by a signed statement from the original certifier of the death certificate or the local medical examiner or coroner from the jurisdiction in which the death occurred listing COVID-19 as a cause or contributing cause of death. This signed statement must provide an additional explanation, or causal pathway, linking the cause of death listed on the death certificate to COVID-19.

• If the death certificate occurred on or after May 17, 2020, the death certificate must attribute the death directly or indirectly to COVID-19.

More information regarding this assistance can be found at COVID-19 Funeral Assistance | FEMA.gov

It is important for everyone to know that all Social Security benefits will continue to be paid to those who receive them. Scammers and other bad actors may try to misinform you into thinking that the pandemic will stop you from receiving Social Security payments, but that is not true. According to Social Security Commissioner Andrew Saul, recipients will also see no change in their regular monthly payment if they receive them by direct deposit and they will continue to receive payments by mail.

• To slow the spread of COVID-19, all local Social Security offices will be closed to the public and will no longer be able to accept walk-in visitors. This is intended to protect the populations they serve – older Americans and people with underlying medical conditions – as well as their employees during the pandemic. Employees will still be able to provide critical services.
  
  
• In case you or a loved one is need of assistance during the pandemic, you can access most services on the Social Security Administration (SSA) website or call toll-free at 1-800-772-1213.
  
  
• To access the SSA's designated COVID-19 webpage, which includes a list of frequently asked questions regarding the pandemic and its impact on Social Security benefits and services, please click here.
  
  
• All Social Security and SSI recipients are eligible for the rebate payments provided in the CARES Act regardless of whether or not they have filed a tax form.

From the outset of this public health crisis, many public officials in Congress and the previous administration repeatedly used racist labeling of COVID-19 and perpetuated stigmatizing falsehoods that disparage many in our communities. These ignorant and hateful comments are unacceptable, and I have unequivocally condemned them for promoting discrimination and violence in place of unity and facts.

According to the CDC, stigma and discrimination can occur when people associate an infectious disease like COVID-19 with a specific population or nationality, even though not everyone in that population or from that region has the disease and members of particular groups are at no greater risk of contracting it.

It is vital that we use language supported by scientists and public health officials when referring to COVID-19. Please click here for more information from the World Health Organization about best practices for naming new infectious diseases.