Resources and care after a loved one dies

• Inform family and caregivers.
• Arrange for the care of children or dependents.
• Arrange for pets to stay with someone who can care for and comfort them.
• Notify your loved one’s school or employer. Ask their employer about benefits, life insurance, and final pay.
• Cancel health coverage for your loved one. 
• Enroll any dependents in new health coverage. You generally have 60 days from the date of the person’s death to enroll in new coverage. 
• Notify your loved one’s spiritual community.
• Request original copies of the death certificate from the funeral home or county clerk’s office. You’ll likely need several, and there’s a cost for each.
   

• Seek out people who care about you and know what you’re going through, who can offer the love and support you need.
• Ask for help. Whether you need a hand with chores or just want companionship, don’t be afraid to reach out to family and friends.
• Avoid making major life changes while grieving.
• Plan ahead for events when you might need more support, like holidays, anniversaries, and other special occasions.
• If you’re part of a spiritual community, stay involved.
• Join a support group or meet with a grief counselor.
   

• Locate your loved one’s will and review their final wishes.
• Consider planning a funeral or memorial service that celebrates the person’s life and honors their wishes.
• Write and publish an obituary. Your funeral home can help.
   

• Find the will and inform the executor.
• Notify banks and other financial institutions.
• Consider consulting an accountant about taxes.
• Inform insurance companies.
   

• If your loved one lived alone, forward their mail and deliveries to your address.
• Review their credit card accounts, subscriptions, and policies. Remove their name from joint accounts and cancel any personal accounts.
• Update or cancel utilities, mobile phone, Internet, and TV and streaming services.
• Prevent identity theft. Cancel their driver’s license, close their email account, and send a copy of the death certificate to 1 of the 3 major credit bureaus.
  
• Update their voter registration.
• Memorialize or delete your loved one’s social media accounts. (You may need to contact the platform for help.)
   

• Find information about safe and convenient ways to dispose of remaining medications with participating Kaiser Permanente pharmacies.
• Learn how to dispose of unused medication from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 
  

Call their employer’s human resources department. The employer will inform Kaiser Permanente, so you won’t need to call us. They can also tell you whether your loved one had other benefits through the company, such as life insurance.

Direct

If your loved one enrolled directly with Kaiser Permanente, contact Member Services in your loved one’s state. Call the phone number on their Kaiser Permanente identification card, or find other ways to reach us. 

Health benefit exchange

If your loved one had an individual and family plan, contact the health benefit exchange in the state where they were covered.

California
Covered California
1-800-300-1506 (TTY 711)

Colorado
Connect for Health Colorado 
1-855-752-6749 (TTY 711)

District of Columbia
DC Health Link
1-855-532-5465 (TTY 711)

Georgia
HealthCare.gov
1-800-318-2596 (TTY 711)

Hawaii
HealthCare.gov 
1-800-318-2596 (TTY 711)

Maryland
Maryland Health Connection 
1-855-642-8572 (TTY 711)

Oregon
Oregon Health Insurance Marketplace 
1-800-318-2596 (TTY 711)

Virginia
HealthCare.gov 
1-800-318-2596 (TTY 711)

Washington state
Washington Healthplanfinder 
1-855-923-4633 (TTY 711)
 

In most cases, the mortuary or funeral home will report your loved one’s death to the Social Security Administration. Social Security will inform Medicare, so you won’t need to contact them.

If one of the following situations applies to your loved one’s death, you may need to contact other agencies.

You’re not using a mortuary or funeral home

You may need to report the death to Social Security yourself. Call 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778) or contact your local Social Security office. 

Your loved one died at a Kaiser Permanente facility

We’ll automatically stop their premium payments — you don’t need to contact us.

Your loved one didn’t die at a Kaiser Permanente facility

You’ll need to contact us to stop their premium payments. Call Kaiser Permanente’s Medicare Member Services in your loved one’s state, 7 days a week, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

• California — 1-800-443-0815 (TTY 711)
• Colorado — 1-800-476-2167 (TTY 711)
• Georgia — 1-800-232-4404 (TTY 711)
  
• Hawaii — 1-800-805-2739 (TTY 711)
• Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. — 1-888-777-5536 (TTY 711)
• Oregon and southwest Washington — 1-877-221-8221 (TTY 711)
• Washington state — 1-888-901-4600 (TTY 711)

Your loved one was covered by Medicare through their employer

Call their employer’s human resources department to end their coverage.

Your loved one’s premium was deducted from Social Security or Railroad Retirement Board benefits

Allow up to 3 months for Social Security or the Railroad Retirement Board to process a refund.
 

In most cases, the mortuary or funeral home will report your loved one’s death to the Social Security Administration. Social Security will inform Medicaid (Medi-Cal in California), so you won’t need to contact them or Kaiser Permanente.

If you need to report the death to Social Security, call 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778) or contact your local Social Security office.