Deductible Medical Expenses

[rhondajoy125]

Can any of the following be included as a medical expense? I understand that medical expenses greater than 7.5 percent of your AGI can be deducted.

1. Travel Vaccinations required by other countries that we traveled to 

OR

2. Supplements, including those recommended by common medical advice (Vitamin D, Calcium for example)

ALSO-

is the 7.5% rule only for medical expenses BEYOND the cost of the insurance we purchase on The Marketplace?

[Vanessa A]

It depends.  If it was simply given due to travel and not recommended by your doctor, then no, you cannot deduct the cost of vaccines. In order for a drug to be deductible it has to be prescribed by a doctor.  

It depends. Supplements are specifically excluded from being deductible unless they are recommended by a medical practitioner for a specific condition that you have a current diagnosis of.  Basically, if your doctor says to take B12 for anemia, then they are deductible.  If you heard on the news that B12 is good for stress, then they are not deductible  Same with Calcium and Vitamin D, if your doctor is recommending them for a specific condition you have, then they are deductible.  Otherwise no. 

Pub 502 Medical and Dental Expenses

No.  ALL medical expenses are combined including health insurance (Do NOT include premiums paid with the Premium Tax Credit, only out of pocket premiums paid), medical treatment, travel for medical treatment, etc. to arrive at the total medical expenses cost.  The combined total is then deductible for the amount that is greater than 7.5% of your AGI.  So, if your health insurance, deductibles that you paid and travel expenses came to $10,000 and your AGI is $50,000, then you would be able to deduct $6,250 (($50,000 x .075=$3,750) (10,000-3,750=6,250)) of the medical expenses as an itemized deduction. 

Itemized expenses include mortgage interest, gambling losses up to winnings,  charitable contributions, state and local taxes up to $10,000, medical expenses in excess of 7.5% of your AGI and casualty and losses in excess of 10% of you AGI with the first $100 not counting towards the loss.  Your health insurance and all medical expenses are only deductible for the amount that is over 7.5% of your AGI.  This means if your AGI is $50,000, then the amount that is over $3,750 is deductible.  

Then your total itemized expenses would need to be greater than your standard deduction below in order to benefit from your expenses. 

The 2024 Standard Deductions are as follows:

• Married Filing Joint (MFJ)              $29,200
• Married Filing Separate (MFS)      $14,600
• Head of Household (HOH)             $21,900 
• Single                                                 $14,600                                

Blind or over 65 and MFJ or MFS add $1,550

Single or HOH if blind or over 65 add $1,950

Standard versus Itemized Deduction

@rhondajoy125 (Edited 2/4/25 @ 5:48AM PST)

[rhondajoy125]

Thank you, regarding the cost of the insurance, Turbo tax asked me if my expenses were greater than XX  and if it was then it was worth itemizing them. I have not yet put the cost of the insurance in so it wasn’t clear if that XX number was inclusive of the cost of the insurance. Since the insurance is included in the amount that can be in excess of 7.5% of our AGI; I will itemize the med expense I have that aren’t travel vaccines or supplements.  thank you

[Vanessa A]

Yes, the insurance is included, but do remember, you cannot include any amount that is paid through the Premium Tax Credit, you can only include the amounts that are out of pocket.