Medical and Dental Expenses
If you itemize deductions, you may deduct
the amounts you paid for medical and dental expenses that exceeded
7.5% of your adjusted gross income (AGI).
The deduction is allowed for expenses paid for the prevention
and alleviation of a physical or mental defect or illness. Medical
expenses include expenses related to diagnosis, cure, mitigation,
treatment, or prevention of disease, or treatment affecting any
function or structure of the body.
Deduction Guidelines
- Expenses must be for you, your spouse or your dependent, or for
anyone who would qualify as your dependent except for having a
gross income of more than $3,800.
- Expenses must be paid during the current tax year, regardless
of when incurred.
- Expenses must not be compensated by insurance.
- Expenses must not be paid out of a tax-free medical savings or health
savings account.
- You must subtract from your deduction total any reimbursement
of medical expenses, whether they were paid to you or directly to
the doctor or hospital.
Qualifying Expenses
- Professional services - doctors, dentists, surgeons,
chiropractors, psychiatrists, psychologist, acupuncture, Christian
Science Practitioners
- Care services - hospital, qualified long-term care, nursing,
laboratory, inpatient drug or alcohol treatment
- Medications - insulin, prescription drugs
- Diseases - diagnosis, mitigation, cure, treatment or
prevention
- Smoking cessation - program fees, prescription drugs to
alleviate nicotine withdrawal (this does not include nicotine gum
or patches)
- Weight loss - program fees to attend weight loss programs for
specific diseases, including obesity, diagnosed by a physician
- Transportation - primarily for and essential to medical
care
Vehicle use - actual out-of-pocket expenses or the standard
mileage rate for medical expenses (23 cents per mile);
expenses for parking and tolls can be included for either
method
- Conferences - admission and transportation for conferences
relating to the chronic diseases of you, your spouse or your
dependent
- Eye care - prescription eye glasses, contact lenses or laser
eye surgery
- Supplementary items - false teeth, hearing aids, crutches,
wheelchairs, guide dogs for the blind or deaf
- Insurance premiums - accident, health, long-term care
insurance
Self-employed persons with a net profit might be able to deduct
100% of medical insurance premiums.
Non-Qualifying Expenses
- Non-prescription over-the-counter medicines or drugs
- Funeral / burial
- Most cosmetic surgery
- Attending a program for the improvement of your general
health
- Meals and lodging while attending a qualifying conference
- Diet food
- Insurance premiums for life insurance, loss of wages or any
policy that pays you a guaranteed amount each week due to
sickness
- Insurance premiums paid by your employer, unless the premiums
are included in box 1 of your Form W-2
For more information see IRS
Publication 502.