Rep. Renee Ellmers (R-N.C.) said on Monday on the house floor that withholding the “death benefit” from fallen soldiers’ families is a “great injustice.”
“As a direct result of the political gridlock here in Washington… service members and their families are no longer receiving their benefits,” Ellmers said.
Five soldiers were killed over the weekend in Afghanistan. Families of fallen soldiers typically receive $100,000 within 36 hours to pay for funeral costs and help with immediate expenses until the family receives survivor benefits. Because of the government shutdown, the relatives will not receive this benefit, according to Today News.
“Despite the government shutdown, our service members are still expected to go to war and we should be expected to keep our promise to these grieving families,” Ellmers said. “I am working as we speak to right this wrong.”
Jeremiah M. Collins Jr., 19, was one of the soldiers killed. Shannon Collins, his mother, told NBC News that while the death benefit is not “urgent” for her, she could still use help paying for her son’s funeral, Today News reports.
“I don’t necessarily have $10,000 to bury my son,” Collins said, according to Today News. “Am I going to be on a payment plan for the rest of my life so that my son can have the services that he deserves?”