HR.5639 | Chuck Osier Burial Benefits Act

Three House members have introduced a bill that could help a U.S. military veteran who uses a body disposition option other than a cemetery burial. H.R. 5639, the “Chuck Osier Burial Benefits Act” bill, would provide a free urn or plaque for an eligible veteran who used cremation, a burial at sea, or another alternative to inhumation in a cemetery. Under current law, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs provides a kind of preneed memorial benefit. Veterans Affairs gives free headstones or grave markers to veterans who are interred in a cemetery, and who have received any kind of discharge other than a dishonorable discharge, according to a department guide to veteran’s burial and memorial benefits.

 Source:  Excerpted from Press Release | Allison Bell | August 31, 2020