I had a total hip replacement and had to buy a tall chair to accommodate my post surgical hip precautions.I bought an electric recliner. Is that a covered medical expense? Before scheduling the surgery, I had no plans to purchase a recliner.

[HelenaC · Accepted solution]

The IRS has a long list of items that are allowable and list of items that are not allowed. See 2016 Publication 502 - IRS.gov

Even though your items are not listed as allowable they are not allowed on the NOT ALLOWABLE list either. The IRS advises the following:

In order to accommodate an individual with a physical defect, you may have to purchase an item ordinarily used as a personal, living, or family item in a special form. You can include the excess of the cost of the item in a special form over the cost of the item in normal form as a medical expense.

In short, the difference in the lift chair cost and the cost of chair with out lift portion would be allowable if purchased to accommodate an individual with a physical defect. The same applies to the tall chair.

Medical, dental, and vision expenses are reported on Schedule A and entered in the Deductions & Credits section:

1. Open your tax return.
   (To do this, sign in to TurboTax and click the orange Take me to my return button.)
2. Search for Schedule A and then click the "Jump to" link in the search results.
3. Answer Yes on the Did you have any medical expenses in 2016? screen.
4. You will then be prompted to enter your medical expenses, starting with prescriptions.

If you're using Federal Free Edition or Basic and your medical expenses are large enough that you would benefit from itemizing deductions, you'll be prompted to upgrade to Deluxe, as the Federal Free and Basic versions do not handle Schedule A.

Related Information:

• What kinds of medical expenses are deductible?
• Why doesn't my refund change after I enter my medical expenses?
• Where do I enter my health insurance premiums if I'm self-employed?
• Am I allowed to deduct medical expenses I haven't paid for yet?