How to Have a Home Funeral During the Pandemic

(adapted from Home Funerals Guides and Pandemic Care)
Safe and Appropriate Home Body Care for the Deceased

• Limit the number of people involved in all facets of care
• Use the same universal precautions that were used during home care, including masks, gloves, gowns, etc.
• Put a mask on the deceased to avoid respiration of droplets
• Place ice higher on the back of the neck
• Avoid chest compression or unnecessary moving
• Insist on social distancing in all phases

On This Page

• Practical information for conducting a safe and meaningful home funeral
  
• Resources and organizations with supporting practical guidance

Filing Paperwork Without a Funeral Director

• Paper death certificates may be difficult to obtain or submit due to social distancing in offices; filing electronically via a local funeral director may be the only expeditious way to obtain a death certificate
• Usual filing procedures may be suspended or modified; contact your county registrar in Oregon (or appropriate town, city, county, or state officials in other locales) for temporary protocols and restrictions
• Be prepared that Medical Examiner’s offices may insert themselves into routine non-COVID-19 deaths as a public health precaution
• If a Funeral Director is Needed (see How to Work with Professionals)
  • Make calls until you find a funeral director supportive of family involvement who is willing to help with filing and body transport while honoring the home funeral elements that are still possible and important to you
• For general context on home funerals in ordinary circumstances, visit our How to Have a Home Funeral page

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Organizations with Supplementary Resources

• National Funeral Directors Association COVID-19 Guidance 
• Centers for Disease Control COVID-19 Guidance
• Green Burial Council
• Pandemic Resources for Families Facing End Of Life: compilation from the National Home Funeral Alliance
• Check the website of your state’s health authority or governor for COVID-19 restrictions specific to your state 

Much of the information on our other pages can provide useful background for family-directed care for the dead and hiring funeral service professionals, including our Glossary, How to Arrange Disposition, How to Work with Professionals, How to Create Ceremony, How to Go Out Greener, and our imagination-expanding Stories. Just keep in mind these pages reflect normal circumstances; you will have to factor in the limitations and stressors on all helping systems referenced here.​