Hi all. Getting banded on 8-4-08 with Dr Aceves in Mexico. Has anyone who is self-pay and had surgery done in Mexico taking the cost as a medical tax decuction? Can this be done? I would be interested in hearing form anyone with any experience with this sort of thing. TIA

From the IRS publication on ALLOWED expenses:

Weight-Loss Program

You can include in medical expenses amounts you pay to lose weight if it is a treatment for a specific disease diagnosed by a physician (such as obesity, hypertension, or heart disease). [Question: Do you need a PCP to prescribe it or can your bariatic surgeon prescribe it?] This includes fees you pay for membership in a weight reduction group and attendance at periodic meetings. You cannot include membership dues in a gym, health club, or spa as medical expenses, but you can include separate fees charged there for weight loss activities.

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. You can include the cost of special food in medical expenses only if:

1. The food does not satisfy normal nutritional needs,
   
2. The food alleviates or treats an illness, and
   
3. The need for the food is substantiated by a physician.
   

The amount you can include in medical expenses is limited to the amount by which the cost of the special food exceeds the cost of a normal diet. See also Weight-Loss Program under What Expenses Are Not Includible, later.