Are Medical Expenses Tax Deductible?

What Medical Expenses Are Tax Deductible?

First, note that medical expenses are only tax deductible when you itemize deductions on your tax return. If you take the standard deduction, as most taxpayers do, you can't deduct medical expenses separately.

IRS Publication 502 gives a comprehensive list of qualifying medical deductions. Some of the more common deductible expenses include:

• Fees paid to doctors, dentists, surgeons, chiropractors, psychiatrists, psychologists and nontraditional medical practitioners
• Inpatient hospital care
• Residential nursing home care when the availability of medical care is the reason for care
• Acupuncture treatments
• Inpatient treatment for drug or alcohol addiction
• Smoking-cessation programs and prescription drugs for nicotine withdrawal
• Weight-loss programs for specific diseases, including obesity, diagnosed by a physician
• Health club memberships if they're part of obesity treatment
• Prescription drugs and medicines, including insulin
• Admission and travel costs for attending a medical conference related to a condition you, your spouse or dependent child have
• Medical aids including false teeth, reading or prescription eyeglasses, contact lenses or hearing aids
• A guide dog or other service animal to assist a visually impaired, hearing disabled or physically disabled person
• Crutches and wheelchairs
• Transportation costs for receiving qualifying medical care
• Insurance premiums for medical care and limited amounts for long-term care

What Medical Expenses Are Not Tax Deductible?

Non-deductible health-related expenses include:

• Insurance premiums paid through an employer-sponsored health plan
• Funeral or burial expenses
• Nonprescription medicines, toiletries, toothpaste or cosmetics
• Trips taken with the general goal of improving health
• Cosmetic surgery
• Nonprescription nicotine patches or gum

Additionally, medical expenses that were paid for (or partially paid for) through insurance or a health savings account (HSA), flexible spending account (FSA), Archer medical savings account (MSA) or health reimbursement arrangement (HRA) are not deductible.

If you're self-employed and claim the self-employment health insurance deduction, you can't also deduct these premium expenses as medical expenses. You may, however, be able to deduct a portion of your premiums if they weren't included in the self-employment health insurance deduction.

What Percentage of Medical Expenses Are Tax Deductible?

All of your qualifying medical expenses are tax deductible, but your deduction is limited based on a percentage of your adjusted gross income (AGI). Here's how: Qualifying medical expenses that are less than 7.5% of your AGI are not deductible; eligible medical expenses that exceed 7.5% of your AGI are.

Say your AGI is $80,000. The first $6,000 (7.5% of $80,000) of your qualifying medical expenses are not deductible. However, if your total qualifying medical expenses for the year are, say, $10,000 and you itemize deductions on your tax return, you can deduct the remaining $4,000. If you're in the 24% tax bracket, a $4,000 deduction saves you roughly $960 in taxes.

How to Deduct Medical Expenses

To claim a deduction for medical expenses on your federal tax return, you'll need Schedule A (Form 1040). You'll also need receipts and records for your qualifying expenses, which include expenses you paid for yourself, your spouse, dependents and your children who are claimed as dependents on another person's tax return (see below for additional qualifying dependents).

When you have your information in one place, follow these steps to claim your deduction.

1. Total up your qualified medical expenses and premiums for the year. Keep receipts and payment records with your tax files.
2. Include any out-of-pocket medical insurance premiums you've paid. If you claimed the self-employment health insurance deduction on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), do not include the amount on line 17 in your medical deduction.
3. Subtract (or exclude) any reimbursements paid to you. Don't include payments you've made from an HSA, FSA or Archer MSA.
4. Report your total medical expenses on line one of Schedule A. For more details on completing the form, see Instructions for Schedule A.

You may also want to claim any other itemized deductions available to you. These include (but aren't limited to) deductions for home mortgage interest, state and local taxes, capital losses and charity donations.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Whose Medical Expenses Can I Deduct?

  You can deduct qualifying medical and dental expenses for any of the following people:

  • Yourself
  • Your spouse
  • Any dependent you claim on your tax return
  • Your child who is claimed as a dependent on someone else's tax return (for instance, on their other parent's return)
  • Someone who could have been claimed as your dependent except that they made $4,700 or more (in 2023) or filed a joint return
  • Someone who could have been your dependent except that you or your spouse are claimed as a dependent on someone else's tax return

  You can also claim qualifying expenses for a service animal but not your pets. You can deduct the cost of buying, training and maintaining a guide dog or other IRS-qualified service animal. To qualify for the deduction, a service animal must be individually trained to assist someone with a visual, hearing or physical disability.

• Are Medical Expenses Paid With an HSA Tax Deductible?

  You can't deduct medical expenses you paid for using an HSA, FSA, Archer MSA or HRA. You also can't deduct expenses paid or reimbursed by your insurance company. If you used any of these accounts (or insurance) to cover medical or health care expenses, either exclude or subtract these amounts from your medical deduction.

• When Can I Claim Medical Expenses on My Taxes?

  You can claim a deduction for medical expenses paid during the tax year. That is, you can only include payments you made in the 2024 calendar year on your 2024 tax return. You should not deduct payments made in 2024 for treatment in future years.

  If you neglected to claim a medical deduction in the past, you can file an amended tax return within three years (or two years from when you paid the tax) to claim it. However, you should not add past-year expenses to this year's deduction as a workaround.

The Bottom Line

Though not everyone with medical expenses will qualify, deducting medical, dental and other health-related expenses can help reduce your federal tax bill if you do. If you think you may have enough eligible medical expenses to claim the deduction this year (or any year), make sure to track your expenses and save receipts throughout the year so you'll be ready to go at tax time.