State helps indigent with burials

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November 30, 2009

BY MIKE HELENTHAL The Commercial-News Mon Nov 30, 2009, 12:32 AM CST

DANVILLE — It’s not a benefit anybody wants to claim, but last year the state of Illinois paid for the funerals of about 12,000 residents who couldn’t afford them — an increase of 20 percent in just five years.

“Basically, it’s for somebody who doesn’t have any money,” said Illinois Department of Human Services spokesman Tom Green. “It would cover the basic necessities.”

The state has about $12 million budgeted for the program, which pays out $1,103 for funeral expenses and $552 for burial costs. Qualifying for basic DHS services like food stamps and medical assistance precludes eligibility in the program.

“It has gone up some over the last several years,” Green said. “Either a family member could pay and submit a bill for it, or a funeral home could submit it. Then the state reimburses them.”

Tim Leek, owner of Danville’s Leek & Sons Funeral Home, said the increase in the number of indigent funerals in Danville may not be as pronounced as the state number. He said that’s because the city’s economic woes can be traced back prior to five years ago.

“When the jobs go and things get tight, one of the things people do is drop their burial insurance policies,” he said. “They decide it’s something they can’t afford.”

Leek said the state-paid funeral is decidedly basic.

“First of all you have to qualify,” he said, “and that would have to be where you’re destitute.”

Green said family members may upgrade funeral proceedings if they pay the difference. They are also entitled to the state reimbursement even if they spend more.

“When times get tough, families pass the hat around,” Leek said. “People tend to do what they have to do.”

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