Tax Deduction
Consider all of your out-of-pocket expenses if it applies to diagnosis, care, prevention or treatment of diseases. May be a deduction if it pertains to medical treatment, over the counter medication, gloves, toilet items, soap, patients clothing, qtips, body lotion, diapers, bed pads all may be tax deducted. Keep all receipts so that at the end of the year you can provide your tax person with accurate costs.
Hydraulic beds, power scooters, Jenny pumps, hydraulic patient lift, air mattress, air pumps, hearing equipment, special equip telephone, wheel chair ramps: if these items are not covered by insurance they can be a tax deduction. Again, keep all receipts and check with your tax person to see if any out-of-pocket expenses generated for the care of a person is allowed.
Caregivers
Please research longterm care facilities and adult day care. In some cases these are allowed deductions. If you pay for a family member to sit in for you, this may be a deduction. Gas for your vehicle to travel to and from care facilities, durable medical equipment, home modification, wheelchair costs, renovation of home i.e., widened doors and special equipment for kitchen and bathroom modifications.
I was much too young to retire. In addition, I commuted two hundred miles a day back and forth to a job that made it even harder on me. This caused me to employ an inhouse caregiver. This can be very tricky, as you have a limited budget and you need help.
There are companies out there that will provide you with caregivers. I could not afford the cost to care for Sharon as my household expenses, commuting expense, and fifteen plus dollars an hour for additional help.
I placed advertisements in the Penny Saver personal referrals section. Over eight years, I must have gone through about twenty people, only to find two caregivers, which I would refer to others.
If you decide, or have to travel this route, be careful, conduct background checks, if possible, and protect your valuables. I returned home one day unexpectedly, only to find one of my caregiver, was day sitting three of her grandchildren.
My neighbor informed me that once I left for work, the caregiver would leave, leaving Sharon alone. This is not only, unsafe, but because of Sharon’s medical condition, against the law.