Article Archives
Uncommon medical deductions
While getting your receipts ready for your income tax preparation this April, don’t forget to consider medical expenses as a tax deduction. Over the past fifteen years, the taxman has continued to expand the items that are considered to be medical expenses. This year a considered medical expense includes incremental construction costs to build a principal residence for a person who has severe and prolonged mobility impairment. Presumably, this would include such things as extra design costs relating to the special design of the building to make it usable for a handicapped person. Medical expenses had previously only included reasonable expenses relating to renovations or alternations to a patient's dwelling where the patient lacks the normal physical development to gain access to the dwelling or to be mobile and/or functional within the dwelling.
Other unusual and missed medical expenses include such items as:
1. 50% of the cost of an air conditioner prescribed by a doctor for an individual with a chronic ailment;
2. Power-operated, guided chair installations used solely in a stairway;
3. Power-operated lifts or transportation equipment designed exclusively for use by a disabled individual gaining access to a building or assisting them to gain access to a vehicle;
4. Reasonable expenses relating to alterations to the driveway of a patient's principal residence where the patient has severe and prolonged mobility impairment; and
5. Moving expenses of a patient to a dwelling more accessible by the patient.
As the medical community continues to develop advances in medicine, there are more inclusions to the medical expense list. For example, an artificial kidney machine, with reasonable installation, home alterations, and operating costs, is included in medical expenses.
When claiming medical expenses, people often forget that they can claim traveling expenses, which includes mileage, ferries, hotel accommodations, and meals to obtain medical treatment that is not available in the their community. For example, people in Nanaimo can deduct mileage costs for trips to Vancouver and to Victoria. However, medical expenses still doesn't address the issues of preventive medicines, vitamins, special foods and supplements, or professional services of a naturopath.
Often forgotten in the list of medical expenses claimed are payments for private health insurance (most often, extended health insurance) which is most commonly deducted from employees as payroll deductions. Also - to most taxpayers' delight - they can deduct holiday medical insurance as part of their medical expenses.
Even though it is never a pleasure to be ill or sick, by making sure that you are including your medical expenses as one of your tax deductions you are at least getting some financial relief.
For an up-to-date list of the medical expenses that are deductible contact the office of Joyce A. Smith & Associates.
Joyce Smith is president of JA Smith & Associates Inc. Certified General Accountants and Certified Financial Planners. The firm offers financial and tax planning advice for both individuals and business.
Wondering how to get started? 
