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Maybe this isn't new information for most of you, but it was for me. I had my mom's taxes done yesterday and was told by the person who did them that the medical expense portion of her monthly assisted living can be written off as a deduction. My mom didn't go into assisted living until the end of December, so it's not possible for this year, but I will definitely be looking into it for next year. I live in Ohio.

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Yes, it is new information for me... and its been interesting gathering information from my Dad's CPA.

Since my Dad was still living in his 3-story house and was a major fall risk, the cost of him having 24-hour caregivers could be deducted. That's good, something I didn't know about. But this January, Dad moved into Independent Living where there is no stairs, but come next tax season the cost of his apartment isn't deductible which I didn't expect. But if there is a higher level of care cost for him while being in IL, that may or may not be deductible... that is something the CPA and I will need to revisit come next tax season. The wording is very tricky how the IRS has it spelled out.
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Go to the IRS website irs.gov and search for "medical expenses". The deductibility of assisted living costs depends on why the person needs assisted living and what services they need. Any medical expenses like the administration of medications are allowed, and if the person needs assisted living for personal safely (usually because of dementia), even the room and board portion could be considered a medical expense. Only amounts paid out-of-pocket can be counted, not any portion paid by long term care insurance. Charges for cable TV, phone or beauty shop services are not a medical expense. Medical expenses that exceed 7.5% of the person's adjusted gross income (10% if the person is under 65 at the end of the year), can be claimed as an itemized deduction on Schedule A.
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