One nice offset of paying hundreds of dollars a year to your doctor and to the hospital, is the fact that you can use those expenses as a deduction on your tax return. If you are thinking about deducting your medical expenses, it’s important to know that your bills must add up to more that 7.5% of your tax year’s adjusted gross income. If your bills fall under that threshold, then you cannot deduct it on your tax return. If they are above the threshold, here are some things to keep in mind when deducting it!

You can Deduct Dental and Vision Expenses

Along with deducting your medical expenses, you can also deduct expenses that come from dental or vision care. You can potentially deduct items like dental visits, braces, implants, root canals and other dental procedures. You also could deduct eye exams, contacts and glasses if you need too. If you aren’t sure if a dental or vision expense counts, keep the receipt and record of the procedure or item and ask your local tax accountant.

Other Items That Count

Along with dental and vision care, you can also deduct other items that you may not have thought of. If you have a surgery, or seek psychiatric or psychological treatment, you may be able to deduct those expenses. Preventative care, prescription medicine and medical devices also fall under the medical deduction. If you have hearing aids, you may be able to deduct all the expenses associated with those. If you pay monthly insurance that isn’t paid pre-tax through an employer-provided plan, you can deduct those payments along with travel expenses to and from the doctor. The medical expenses deduction includes all these items for yourself, your spouse and any dependents you claim.

Things That Don’t Count for the Deduction

Now that you know what you can deduct, here are some things you can’t deduct. You can’t deduct any expense that you have already been reimbursed for. This means if your insurance or employer reimbursed you, or if you use a medical pre-payment plan, you can’t deduct any expense that was reimbursed. If you get cosmetic surgery, you can’t claim any expenses associated with that procedure, unless it was part of a life-saving procedure or some other serious health matter. You also can’t deduct health supplies like toothpaste, Tylenol or Advil, soap or vitamins.

If you want to deduct a medical expense, make sure you paid it in the year you are deducting it from. If the surgery happened in December, but you paid the bill in January, you need to deduct that expense for the January. To get the medical expense deduction you must make sure your expenses clear 7.5% of your AGI and you must itemize your deductions instead of taking the standard deduction. If you take the standard deduction you can not take the medical deduction. If you need help filing your tax return or need help deciding a good tax plan for you and your business, call us today at 844-841-9857 or click below to schedule a free consultation!