Taxes, medical deductions, and fiscal years

[Mama_Zappa]

So for medical deductions, you can’t deduct something that has been reimbursed by insurance.

What about when reimbursement happens in a different year?

I haven’t had any luck finding anything explicit about the “different years” scenario.

Two specific examples: Scenario 1: For a dental expense in 2011, insurance paid in 2012.

Scenario 2: Dental services in 2012, insurance filed in 2012, but didn’t pay until 2013.

Either I go by when the payments were made (in which case, scenario 1 reduces our expenses a little in 2012 and a lot in 2013) or when the services were incurred (and paid by us) (in which case it reduces them a little in 2011 and a lot in 2012).

If anyone has any cites for how this should be treated, I’d be very grateful.

[hajario]

If you were reimbursed it can’t be used as a write off.

[Mama_Zappa]

@hajario

If you were reimbursed it can’t be used as a write off.

Right - I’m just thinking about if the reimbursement happens long after the expense, conceivably even after taxes have been filed.

I did finally come up with the right google-fu and it looks like I could… but would then have to take the reimbursement as income to the extent I wrote it off.

From here

@IRS

Reimbursement in a later year. If you are reimbursed in a later year for medical expenses you deducted in an earlier year, you generally must report the reimbursement as income up to the amount you previously deducted as medical expenses

.

By which, I gather if I were to deduct 2,000 in expenses, and later got 3,000 in reimbursement (the other 1,000 being part of the “less than 7.5% AGI”), I’d have to record 2,000 of income.

So all in all, I’m pretty sure we’re not going to try to deduct; the one reimbursement is the one that makes the difference (without it we’re under 7.5%).