eTax.com Offers Tips on Deducting Medical and Dental Expenses on Tax Return

February 1, 2013

Medical and Dental expenses can significantly increase your Tax Refund this year.

"There are a couple of steps to figure out whether you can claim any of your medical expenses. Here are the steps," explained Paul Stanley of eTax.com "Here are the steps."

First, you need to add up all of your medical and dental expenses. You can include expenses you paid for yourself, your spouse, or a dependent such as your child. Be sure to count any medical expense you paid during the year. Usually what counts is the date you paid an expense, not the date when the medical service was received. Expenses that qualify include co-payments and unreimbursed amounts for prescriptions, doctor visits, and procedures. You could also include some insurance premiums, medical supplies, medical related mileage, and transportation costs, and now you can also include breast pumps and breast feeding supplies.

Step two is you need to see if you are total expenses are more than 7.5% of your adjusted gross income. If they are, you can deduct the portion of your expenses that exceeds 7.5%. So, for example, if your income is $50,000, you can only claim the portion of your medical expenses that is more than $3,750, and be sure to keep all of your receipts.