Twin Cities Business Daily

How I can defer my medical expenses to a year with more income?

Is there anything I can do? It doesn't seem to make sense that medical expenses can't be used to offset income in later years. People with the highest expenses are those who probably have the least income because they couldn't work. Yet because medical expenses can't be deferred the deductions go to waster. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks. The govt let us defer capital losses but not medical expenses. Total BS! Thanks for your help.

Public Comments

1. No sorry you cannot. You can only use medical expenses in the year they were paid.
2. Unless you can schedule all procedures in December and pay them in January, you are out of luck on deferring them.
3. You get to deduct the expenses in the year they are paid. BUT if you try to pay them in a year when you earn more income, your threshhold for being able to claim them goes up. Medical expenses must exceed 7.5% of your AGI in order for you to claim them PLUS it must make sense for you to itemize overall otherwise it is of no benefit to you.
4. Sense? You want the government to charge you taxes in a way that makes sense?