Quick Exit In 2024, the Maine Legislature established the Maine Mass Violence Care Fund (MMVCF) to support the long-term medical and mental health counseling needs of mass violence victims and survivors. The MMVCF is administered by the Office of the Maine State Treasurer and the Maine Victims’ Compensation Program in the Criminal Division of the Maine Office of the Attorney General.
How does the Fund work?
In 2024, the Maine Legislature approved $5 million to establish the MMVCF. The law directed the Maine State Treasurer to invest the money. Over the past three years, the amount of money earned from investing the $5 million is over $300,000. Only the investment earnings can be spent, and the Fund only becomes available three years after a mass violence incident. The MMVCF provides extra funding to reimburse the expenses of mass violence victims who need more financial help after using all of the $15,000 available through the Maine Victims’ Compensation Program. The Maine Victims’ Compensation Board makes decisions about the payments made from the MMVCF to reimburse victim expenses.
Who is eligible?
Anyone who receives assistance through the Maine Victims’ Compensation Program is eligible for MMVCF funding. MMVCF can help individuals who were physically injured or were present and experienced psychological injury on October 25, 2023 in Lewiston, Maine, and family or household members of victims who died or were physically injured.
What is covered?
The MMVCF is an extension of the Maine Victims’ Compensation Program and can reimburse medical bills, mental health counseling expenses, and lost wages related to medical treatment that are not covered by insurance. MMVCF is the available funding source after a mass violence victim reaches the $15,000 cap for Victims’ Compensation.
How much is available?
In September 2026, the Maine Victims’ Compensation Board voted to determine that the October 25, 2023 mass violence incident in Lewiston officially qualifies as a “mass violence crime.” The Board determined that for the first year after the Fund opens for victims of the Lewiston incident, payments to reimburse eligible expenses will be capped at $10,000 per claim. The Board will continually monitor how victims and survivors of the Lewiston incident are using available funding sources and any anticipated needs, as well as the amount available to spend from the MMCVF, and will adjust the cap as needed. The goal is to ensure that mass violence victims and survivors are not left with uninsured medical and mental health counseling expenses, while still ensuring that the MMVCF remains available for decades to come.
When does MMVCF funding become available?
The MMVCF becomes available three years after the date of a qualifying mass violence incident, or October 25, 2026 for the Lewiston, Maine incident. After October 25, 2026, Victims’ Compensation Program staff will automatically begin making payments from the MMVCF for any mass violence related claims that exceed the $15,000 per claim cap.
How do mass violence victims access the MMVCF?
Mass violence victims do not need to do anything to access the MMVCF. No new application is required. After October 25, 2026, when victims and survivors of the Lewiston, Maine incident reach the $15,000 cap for Victims’ Compensation, staff will move those claims to the new funding source. The Victims’ Compensation Program will communicate directly with those individuals to notify them and address any questions.
What if I did not receive assistance from the Victims’ Compensation Program or have not applied?
If you were injured or present at one of the two scenes in Lewiston on October 25, 2023, or if a family or household member was killed, the Victims’ Compensation Program likely has an application on file for you. Program staff can help you access Victims’ Compensation to pay for your uninsured medical or mental health counseling expenses, lost wages related to medical care, and more. If you do not have an existing application, Program staff can help you complete one. Advocate/Navigators at the Maine Resiliency Center can assist you as well.
If you were impacted by the Lewiston incident and need financial help with mental health counseling, support is available. For those who do not qualify for the Victims’ Compensation Program, including first responders and extended family members, Program staff and Maine Resiliency Center Advocate/Navigators can help you get connected to other funding sources.
Maine Victims’ Compensation Program
1-800-903-7882
MaineVictimsCompensation.OAG@maine.gov
Maine Resiliency Center
207-515-3930
Info@maineresiliencycenter.org