70 Commonly omitted "Medical Expenses" that are allowable by the IRS

TaxGuru · #1 (**permalink**) 03-25-2008, 05:21 PM

Taxpayers have frequently omitted some commonly allowed medical expense items that are deductible on Schedule 'A' of the tax return. The IRS has allowed a significant number of items that can be deducted as part of Medical Expenses. However, taxpayers generally seem to omit the inclusion of many these items on their personal tax returns. The most commonly omitted "Medical Expenses" are as follows:

1. Abortion
2. Acupuncture
3. Alcoholism treatment fees
4 Annual Medical Physical Checkups
5. Artificial limb
6. Artificial teeth
7. Bandages
8. Breast reconstruction surgery
9. Birth control pills
10. Braille books and magazines
11. Capital expenses & Home improvements incurred to enable easy access to a handicapped person
12. Chiropractor Fee
13. Christian Science Practioner
14. Contact lenses
15. Crutches
16. Dental Surgery fees
17. Dental treatment fees
18. Diagnostic devices
19. Disabled dependant care expenses
20. Drug addiction treatment center
21. Drugs
22. Eyeglasses
23. Eye surgery
24. Fertility enhancement
25. Guide dog or other animal
26. Hearing aids
27. Home care
28. Hospital Meals
29. Hospital services
30. Insurance premiums
31. Insurance for Contact Lenses
32. Laboratory fees
33. Lead-based paint removal
34. Learning disability
35. Legal fees
36. Lifetime care – advance payments
37. Lodging
38. Long-term care insurance premium
39. Long-term care costs
40. Medical conferences
41. Medical information plan
42. Medical services
43. Medicines
44. Mentally retarded, special home for
45. Nursing home
46. Nursing services
47. Operations
48. Optometrist fees
49. Organ donors
50. Osteopath
51. Oxygen
52. Orthopedic Shoes
53. Prosthesis
54. Prescription Drugs
55. Prescription Eye Glasses
56. Psychiatric care fees
57. Psychoanalysis
58. Psychologist fees
59. Special education
60. Sterilization procedure costs
61. Stop-smoking programs fees
62. Surgery
63. Therapy
64. Transplants
65. Transportation
66. Vasectomy procedure costs
67. Vision correction surgery
68. Weight-loss program, if directed by a Medical Doctor or Profession
69. Wheelchair
70. X-ray

Wayne · #2 (**permalink**) 03-30-2008, 11:13 AM

If taxpayer had to travel long distance to seek medical consultation, is the entire cost of the trip deductible?

That is travel, lodgings, meals and other incidentals related to the trip?

TaxGuru · #3 (**permalink**) 04-15-2008, 01:17 AM

Yes! As such, the trip appeared for medical purposes, hence all the related expenses would also be deductible under travel expenses on Form Schedule 'A' Itemized Deductions under the Medical Deductions Section.