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Are Health Insurance Premiums A Federal Tax Deduction?

By Marilyn Katz

Republish: EasyPublish™
Published: 11Apr2011
Word count: 458
Viewed: 513 time(s)

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Most Americans worry about the increasing cost of good major medical insurance premiums and other health expenses. However, the actual cost is really lower because the premiums can be deducted by many of us.

Let us look at some ways to deduct your insurance rates from your income taxes!

Do you get a medical plan at work where your employer pays some of the cost? If so, you may still be able to deduct some of your costs. If you pay for your part of the premium through an employer pretax plan, you are already getting a tax break. The amount you pay reduces your taxable income, and so you should pay less tax. This is also true of other medical expenses you pay through your pretax plan. Even if your job does not have a pretax plan for medical expenses, you can deduct any medical expenses will total more than 7.5 percent of your adjusted gross income. This is true for medical insurance, and you can also deduct premiums for dental insurance, and qualified long term care insurance. Other medical expenses, that you have to pay out of your pocket, also go into that total. It is important to keep track of your medical expenses every year so you do not miss out on this tax break!

For example, let us say you and your employer share the costs of a major medical insurance plan. Your family premiums equal $1,200 a month so you pay $600 of that through payroll deduction every month. That equals $7,200 a year. Your employer paid the other half. Let us say your adjusted gross income (AGI) was $50,000. You can deduct any amount over $3,750, which would be 7.5 percent of $50,000. This should reduce your final tax bill.

What if you do not have an employer based health insurance plan? Many people work for smaller companies that do not offer group medical benefits. Others are self employed business owners, contract workers, or professionals. If you have to buy individual health insurance, you can deduct the premiums as an expense. This medical insurance can cover you, your spouse, and your children. This reduces the real cost of the premiums because you will get some tax breaks.

While you can deduct health, dental, and qualified long term care insurance, these rules do not apply to disability insurance or the medical coverage that comes with auto insurance policies.

Hopefully you can use these deductions to make your tax bill lower, and your health insurance more affordable!

If you are still struggling with your premiums, you may want to run some online insurance quotes so you can find cheaper rates.

FInd out more about who can deduct health insurance premiums to reduce the bill or get a larger refund. If you want to save even more money, take a moment to compare online insurance quotes with our fast and free forms!

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