Yes and no....

The 2019 Coronavirus has impacted every part of life, even funerals; however, as more than 250,000 Americans have been laid to rest as a result of COVID-19, much misinformation concerning the funeral arrangement process continues to circulate in the public domain. We are even aware of some funeral homes who have tried taking advantage of our policyholders by charging illegal fees or unnecessarily price gouging. So what is legal for funeral homes to charge and what is illegal?

The FTC regulates the funeral industry and does not permit funeral homes to impose surcharges for PPE or other handling measures as a result of COVID-19. Nonetheless, a funeral home can increase its standard fee structure for services like embalming or disinfecting unembalmed remains, so some funeral homes will charge a higher rate than usual, particularly as demand on the funeral industry increases, but it is illegal for funeral homes to impose specific COVID-19 related surcharges..