Mother-in-law 106 yrs old in assisted living running out of money

[degnaw]

My mother-in-law is 106 yrs old, living in assisted care facility. Her only income is social security and her savings are spent. She has one daughter (far advanced Parkinsons disease). Her grand children would like to keep her in assisted living facility. A lot of her cost will be my responsibility (room and Board) but the rest of the family (Grand children) will contribute some of the cost. Is any of this cost tax deductible?

[rjs]

The portion of the cost that is for medical care can be claimed as an itemized deduction by the person who claims your mother-in-law as a dependent. The facility should give you a letter at the end of the year showing how much of their charge was for medical care. The cost of room and board is not deductible.

You and the other family members will have to determine who can claim your mother-in-law as a dependent. Only one person can claim her. That would normally be the person who provides more than half of her support. If no one provides more than half of her support, see "Multiple Support Agreement" on page 21 of IRS Publication 501.

Only medical expenses in excess of 7.5% of your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) are deductible. (Enter the full amount that you paid in TurboTax. TurboTax will subtract 7.5% of your AGI.) The total medical expenses on your tax return will include the medical expenses for your mother-in-law (if you are the one who claims her as a dependent) plus any other medical expenses you have that were not paid or reimbursed by insurance.

In addition, medical expenses are an itemized deduction. They will not reduce your tax or increase your refund unless your total itemized deductions are more than your standard deduction.

[fanfare]

If your mother-in-law is destitute, Medicaid should cover the continuing cost of her assisted living arrangement.