IRS Publication 502: Medical And Dental Expenses

A document published by the Internal Revenue Service detailing the deductions permitted for medical expenses. Medical and dental expenses are itemized deductions, and IRS Publication 502 indicates what type of expenses can and cannot be included, how to take into account money received from a personal injury, how to account for medical devices that are sold, and how to report any medical deductions on the tax return itself.

Taxpayers can deduct only medical expenses that are more than 7.5% of their adjusted gross income. If the total is less than that, then the taxpayer won't be able to claim the expenses.


While the IRS document does outline some of the most common medical expenses claimed by taxpayers, a number of conditions are not mentioned specifically. Taxpayers should refer to the IRS definition of a medical expense: "the costs of diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease, and the costs for treatment affecting any part of function of the body."