Hey...

does anybody know...

If you had surgery in Mexico using a US based coordinator and the surgery was elective (not medically necessary) can this be deducted from taxes as a medical expense?

Almost every tax question can be answered with ... it depends. It does not matter if you paid out of the country for medical care. What does matter is your diagnosis and is the expense a medical necessity? The following is straight from the IRS website. The colored portions deal with weight loss (which was not always on the medical expense list).

Topic 502 - Medical and Dental Expenses

If you itemize your deductions on Form 1040, Schedule A, you may be able to deduct expenses you paid that year for medical care (including dental) for yourself, your spouse, and your dependents. Publication 502, Medical and Dental Expenses, contains additional information on who will qualify as a dependent. You may deduct only the amount by which your total medical care expenses for the year exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income. You do this calculation on Form 1040, Schedule A in computing the amount deductible.

A deduction is allowed only for expenses primarily paid for the prevention or alleviation of a physical or mental defect or illness. Medical care expenses include payments for the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease, or treatment affecting any structure or function of the body. These expenses include payments for legal medical services rendered by any medical practitioner and the cost of equipment, supplies, and diagnostic devices used for medical care purposes.

Medical expenses include insurance premiums paid for medical care or qualified long-term care insurance. The deduction for a qualified long-term care insurance policy's premium is limited. If you are self-employed and have a net profit for the year, you may be able to deduct (as an adjustment to income) amounts paid for medical insurance for yourself and your spouse and dependents. You cannot take this deduction for any month in which you eligible to participate in any subsidized health plan maintained by your employer or your spouse's employer. If you do not claim 100 percent of you self-employed health insurance deduction, you can include the remaining premiums with your other medical expenses as an itemized deduction on Form 1040, Schedule A. You may not deduct insurance premiums paid by an employer-sponsored health insurance plan (cafeteria plan) unless the premiums are included in Box 1 of your Form W-2.

Medical expenses may include:

• Fees paid to doctors, dentists, surgeons, chiropractors, psychiatrists, psychologists, and Christian Science practitioners for medical care expenses
• Payments for hospital services, qualified long-term care services, nursing services, and laboratory fees including the incidental cost of meals and lodging charged by a hospital or similar institution if your principal reason for being there is to receive medical care
• Payments for acupuncture treatments or inpatient treatment at a center for alcohol or drug addiction are also deductible medical expenses. You may include amounts you paid for participating in a smoking-cessation program and for drugs prescribed to alleviate nicotine withdrawal
• The cost of participating in a weight-loss program for a specific disease or diseases, including obesity, diagnosed by a physician. In general, you may not deduct the cost of purchasing diet food items or the cost of health club dues
• The cost of drugs is deductible only for drugs that require a prescription, except for insulin
• Admission and transportation to a medical conference relating to the chronic disease of yourself, your spouse, or your dependent (if the costs are primarily for and essential to the medical care). However, you may not deduct the costs for meals and lodging while attending the medical conference
• The cost of items such as false teeth, prescription eyeglasses or contact lenses, laser eye surgery, hearing aids, crutches, wheelchairs, and guide dogs for the blind or deaf, and
• Transportation costs primarily for and essential to medical care that qualify as medical expenses. The actual fare for a taxi, bus, train, or ambulance can be deducted. If you use your car for medical transportation, you can deduct actual out-of-pocket expenses such as gas and oil, or you can deduct the standard mileage rate for medical expenses. With either method you may include tolls and parking fees

You may not deduct funeral or burial expenses, over-the-counter medicines, toothpaste, toiletries, cosmetics, a trip or program for the general improvement of your health, or most cosmetic surgery. You may not deduct amounts paid for nicotine gum and nicotine Patches, which do not require a prescription

You can only include the medical expenses you paid during the year. Your total medical expenses for the year must be reduced by any reimbursement. It makes no difference if you receive the reimbursement or if it is paid directly to the doctor or hospital.

See Publication 502, Medical and Dental Expenses, for additional information.

Weight-Loss Program

[/url]You cannot include in medical expenses the cost of a weight-loss program if the purpose of the weight loss is the improvement of appearance, general health, or sense of well-being. You cannot include amounts you pay to lose weight unless the weight loss is a treatment for a specific disease diagnosed by a physician (such as obesity, hypertension, or heart disease). If the weight-loss treatment is not for a specific disease diagnosed by a physician, you cannot include either the fees you pay for membership in a weight reduction group or fees for attendance at periodic meetings. Also, you cannot include membership dues in a gym, health club, or spa.

You cannot include the cost of diet food or beverages in medical expenses because the diet food and beverages substitute for what is normally consumed to satisfy nutritional needs.

Almost every tax question can be answered with ... it depends. It does not matter if you paid out of the country for medical care. What does matter is your diagnosis and is the expense a medical necessity? The following is straight from the IRS website. The colored portions deal with weight loss (which was not always on the medical expense list).

Topic 502 - Medical and Dental Expenses

If you itemize your deductions on Form 1040, Schedule A, you may be able to deduct expenses you paid that year for medical care (including dental) for yourself, your spouse, and your dependents. Publication 502, Medical and Dental Expenses, contains additional information on who will qualify as a dependent. You may deduct only the amount by which your total medical care expenses for the year exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income. You do this calculation on Form 1040, Schedule A in computing the amount deductible.

A deduction is allowed only for expenses primarily paid for the prevention or alleviation of a physical or mental defect or illness. Medical care expenses include payments for the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease, or treatment affecting any structure or function of the body. These expenses include payments for legal medical services rendered by any medical practitioner and the cost of equipment, supplies, and diagnostic devices used for medical care purposes.

Medical expenses include insurance premiums paid for medical care or qualified long-term care insurance. The deduction for a qualified long-term care insurance policy's premium is limited. If you are self-employed and have a net profit for the year, you may be able to deduct (as an adjustment to income) amounts paid for medical insurance for yourself and your spouse and dependents. You cannot take this deduction for any month in which you eligible to participate in any subsidized health plan maintained by your employer or your spouse's employer. If you do not claim 100 percent of you self-employed health insurance deduction, you can include the remaining premiums with your other medical expenses as an itemized deduction on Form 1040, Schedule A. You may not deduct insurance premiums paid by an employer-sponsored health insurance plan (cafeteria plan) unless the premiums are included in Box 1 of your Form W-2.

Medical expenses may include:

• Fees paid to doctors, dentists, surgeons, chiropractors, psychiatrists, psychologists, and Christian Science practitioners for medical care expenses
• Payments for hospital services, qualified long-term care services, nursing services, and laboratory fees including the incidental cost of meals and lodging charged by a hospital or similar institution if your principal reason for being there is to receive medical care
• Payments for acupuncture treatments or inpatient treatment at a center for alcohol or drug addiction are also deductible medical expenses. You may include amounts you paid for participating in a smoking-cessation program and for drugs prescribed to alleviate nicotine withdrawal
• The cost of participating in a weight-loss program for a specific disease or diseases, including obesity, diagnosed by a physician. In general, you may not deduct the cost of purchasing diet food items or the cost of health club dues
• The cost of drugs is deductible only for drugs that require a prescription, except for insulin
• Admission and transportation to a medical conference relating to the chronic disease of yourself, your spouse, or your dependent (if the costs are primarily for and essential to the medical care). However, you may not deduct the costs for meals and lodging while attending the medical conference
• The cost of items such as false teeth, prescription eyeglasses or contact lenses, laser eye surgery, hearing aids, crutches, wheelchairs, and guide dogs for the blind or deaf, and
• Transportation costs primarily for and essential to medical care that qualify as medical expenses. The actual fare for a taxi, bus, train, or ambulance can be deducted. If you use your car for medical transportation, you can deduct actual out-of-pocket expenses such as gas and oil, or you can deduct the standard mileage rate for medical expenses. With either method you may include tolls and parking fees

You may not deduct funeral or burial expenses, over-the-counter medicines, toothpaste, toiletries, cosmetics, a trip or program for the general improvement of your health, or most cosmetic surgery. You may not deduct amounts paid for nicotine gum and nicotine Patches, which do not require a prescription

You can only include the medical expenses you paid during the year. Your total medical expenses for the year must be reduced by any reimbursement. It makes no difference if you receive the reimbursement or if it is paid directly to the doctor or hospital.

See Publication 502, Medical and Dental Expenses, for additional information.

Weight-Loss Program

You cannot include in medical expenses the cost of a weight-loss program if the purpose of the weight loss is the improvement of appearance, general health, or sense of well-being. You cannot include amounts you pay to lose weight unless the weight loss is a treatment for a specific disease diagnosed by a physician (such as obesity, hypertension, or heart disease). If the weight-loss treatment is not for a specific disease diagnosed by a physician, you cannot include either the fees you pay for membership in a weight reduction group or fees for attendance at periodic meetings. Also, you cannot include membership dues in a gym, health club, or spa.

You cannot include the cost of diet food or beverages in medical expenses because the diet food and beverages substitute for what is normally consumed to satisfy nutritional needs.

It only matters if yu get audited. My accountant said write it off...If you get audited they may or may not allow it but no way to know. Heck, I'm going to Mexico for surgery.. I'm a risk taker..lol

wow oopsseedaisy.... that is really helpful... thank

I called belightweight and they said it was deductable. I was obese even though I didn't have a "diagnosis" per se. I guess you get flagged for audit when you have health insurance but dont use it to cover your proceedure.

I think I'm just going to do it.....

The worst thing is I will have to pay it back.

my next issues is that I elected not to tell my family. My sister is an accountant and does my taxes every year... hmmmmmm

thanks for the responses guys

The IRS will not know you did not use your insurance. You include to the accountant and the IRS your out of pocket medical expenses. The amount does not have to be itemized. If the IRS considers the amount to be out of the reasonable range this would lead to further questioning. I only have about 6 people a year that qualify to deduct medical expenses unless they are in a nursing home.

This is because you can only deduct the medical expenses over 7.5% of Adjusted Gross Income(AGI). I know that is a foreign language to most.

Say your wages are $100,000 and you have adjustments for educator expenses in the amount of $250 and Student loan interest in the amount of $2000. And you have medical expenses of $10,000.

Your AGI would be: 100,000 - 250 - 2000 = 97,750 and 7.5% = 7,331

Deductible medical expenses would be:

10,000 - 7331 = 2,669

I know it does not seem fair, but the IRS didn't ask me.

The IRS will not know you did not use your insurance. You include to the accountant and the IRS your out of pocket medical expenses. The amount does not have to be itemized. If the IRS considers the amount to be out of the reasonable range this would lead to further questioning. I only have about 6 people a year that qualify to deduct medical expenses unless they are in a nursing home.

This is because you can only deduct the medical expenses over 7.5% of Adjusted Gross Income(AGI). I know that is a foreign language to most.

Say your wages are $100,000 and you have adjustments for educator expenses in the amount of $250 and Student loan interest in the amount of $2000. And you have medical expenses of $10,000.

Your AGI would be: 100,000 - 250 - 2000 = 97,750 and 7.5% = 7,331

Deductible medical expenses would be:

10,000 - 7331 = 2,669

I know it does not seem fair, but the IRS didn't ask me.

wow...You guys sure have a lot of crazy stuff you have to try and make sense of..... I think I'll confess to my accountant sister about the surgery and let her sort it out.

Thanks.... it does help me understand a little better

stacey

wow...You guys sure have a lot of crazy stuff you have to try and make sense of..... I think I'll confess to my accountant sister about the surgery and let her sort it out.

Thanks.... it does help me understand a little better

stacey

Yeah I wrote my son's braces off last year and it's just listed as medical/dental on the tax return. So the IRS has no way of knowing what is was for unless they ask..

I am definitely going to deduct it next year, as well as the travel expenses. I live in Arizona, and medical expenses that do not meet the % on the federal are deductible for the state. Jean

I use turbo tax and i deducted surgery, hotel and airfare.

(Hope I don't get audited)

I just wanted to bump this message again because tax deadline time in the USA is only a little more than a month away

Remember you MIGHT be able to deduct the expense of a self-pay VSG, as well as travel and SOME hotel costs. The out of pocket expenses for an insurance payed VSG might be a deduction also.

Keep track of:

• ALL your out of packet expenses for doctors as well as travel to and from the doctors office.
• Out of pocket expenses on PRESCRIBED drugs
• Medical test out of packet expenses
• Out of packet hospitalization costs
  
• Out of packet chiropractic care
• Out of packet dental car
• Put of pocket vision care
  
• IN SOME CASES - Cost of medical insurance if paid 100% exclusively by you
  

If you CAN itemize and the medical expenses are MORE than 7.5% of your adjusted gross income (AGI) the amount ABOVE 7.5% MIGHT be used as a tax deduction. It is important to realize that the INSURANCE COVERED expenses are NOT deductible, nor is the associated costs of employer payed pre-tax insurance coverage.

WARNING: I am not a lawyer nor an accountant so DO consult an expert on this when doing your taxes.