loading…
loading…
loading…
• A program to stop smoking and for prescription medicines to alleviate nico- tine withdrawal. • A weight-loss program as treat- ment for a specific disease (including obesity) diagnosed by a doctor. • Medical treatment at a center for drug or alcohol addiction. • Medical aids such as eyeglasses, contact lenses, hearing aids, braces, crutches, wheelchairs, and guide dogs, including the cost of maintaining them. • Surgery to improve defective vi- sion, such as laser eye surgery or radial keratotomy. • Lodging expenses (but not meals) while away from home to receive medi- cal care provided by a physician in a hospital or a medical care facility related to a hospital, provided there was no sig- nificant element of personal pleasure, recreation, or vacation in the travel. Don't deduct more than $50 a night for each person who meets the requirements in Pub. 502 under Lodging. • Ambulance service and other trav- el costs to get medical care. If you used your own car, you can claim what you spent for gas and oil to go to and from the place you received the care; or you can claim 17 cents a mile. Add parking and tolls to the amount you claim under either method. • Cost of breast pumps and supplies that assist lactation. Limit on long-term care premiums you can deduct. The amount you can deduct for qualified long-term care in- surance contracts (as defined in Pub. 502) depends on the age, at the end of 2020, of the person for whom the premi- ums were paid. See the following chart for details. IF the person was, at the end of 2020, age . . . THEN the most you can deduct is . . . . 40 or under $ 430 41–50 $ 810 51–60 $ 1,630 61–70 $ 4,350 71 or older $ 5,430 Examples of Medical and Dental Payments You Can't Deduct • The cost of diet food. • Cosmetic surgery unless it was necessary to improve a deformity related to a congenital abnormality, an injury from an accident or trauma, or a disfig- uring disease. • Life insurance or income protec- tion policies. • The Medicare tax on your wages and tips or the Medicare tax paid as part of the self-employment tax or household employment taxes. If you were age 65 or older but not entitled to social security benefits, you can deduct premi- ums you voluntarily paid for Medicare A coverage. • Nursing care for a healthy baby. But you may be able to take a credit for the amount you paid. See the Instruc- tions for Form 2441. • Illegal operations or drugs. • Imported drugs not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This includes foreign-made ver- sions of U.S.-approved drugs manufac- tured without FDA approval. • Nonprescription medicines, other than insulin (including nicotine gum and certain nicotine patches). • Travel your doctor told you to take for rest or a change. • Funeral, burial, or cremation costs. Line 1 Medical and Dental Expenses Enter the total of your medical and den- tal expenses, after you reduce these ex- penses by any payments received from insurance or other sources. See Reim- bursements, later. If advance payments of the premium tax credit were made, or you think you may be eligible to claim a premium tax credit, fill out Form 8962 before filling out Schedule A, line 1. See Pub. 502 for how to figure your medical and dental expenses deduction. TIP Don't forget to include insur- ance premiums you paid for medical and dental care. How- ever, if you claimed the self-employed health insurance deduction on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 16, reduce the pre- miums by the amount on line 16. If, during 2020, you were an el- igible trade adjustment assis- tance (TAA) recipient, an alter- native TAA (ATAA) recipient, reemploy- ment TAA (RTAA) recipient, or Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) payee, you must complete Form 8885 before completing Schedule A, line 1. When figuring the amount of insurance premiums you can deduct on Sched- ule A, don’t include any of the following. • Any amounts you included on Form 8885, line 4 or on Form 14095 (The Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC) Reimbursement Request Form). • Any qualified health insurance coverage premiums you paid to "U.S. Treasury–HCTC" for eligible coverage months for which you received the bene- fit of the advance monthly payment pro- gram. • Any advance monthly payments your health plan administrator received from the IRS, as shown on Form 1099-H (Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC) Advance Payments). Whose medical and dental expenses can you include? You can include medical and dental bills you paid in 2020 for anyone who was one of the fol- lowing either when the services were provided or when you paid for them. • Yourself and your spouse. • All dependents you claim on your return. • Your child whom you don't claim as a dependent because of the rules for children of divorced or separated pa- rents. See Child of divorced or separa- ted parents in Pub. 502 for more infor- mation. • Any person you could have claim- ed as a dependent on your return except that person received $4,300 or more of gross income or filed a joint return. • Any person you could have claim- ed as a dependent except that you, or your spouse if filing jointly, can be claimed as a dependent on someone else's 2020 return. TIP CAUTION ! A-2