I spent over six hours gathering receipts for 2008 infertility expenses and creating a spreadsheet where I catalogued every single expense in the way Turbo Tax indicates the federal government wants to receive it and it looks my 20K expense in 2008 will yield a few grand back. I am NOT complaining.
My TERROR is that the medical expenses will trigger an audit. You’re probably wondering why I would fear an audit if I haven’t cheated and the answer is simple. I haven’t killed anyone either but I would wet myself if I were brought into the station for questioning. People who have an ability to f*** with my life in costly and destructive ways scare the life out of me. Plenty of people have been released from prison after decades when newer DNA tests found they weren’t guilty and auditors come LOOKING for an error – they want to leave with SOMETHING that justifies their time and the government’s expense.
I have credit card receipts from my fertility clinic and a billing statement of charges 5 pages long and every single EOB from last year. But I don’t have a receipt that ties to each charge, you know? For example, when you pay for an IVF cycle, you pay for the entire enchilada in advance. Then the clinic just debits the account for each procedure you have done but they don’t mail you a receipt, per se, with every single office visit (or, at least, my clinic didn’t).
I have some faith that if I were audited (super GULP!), what I have would suffice and that if they wanted more, I could get it from the clinic. But, again, how much more is there? I have each and every single EOB printed from my insurance account online (which clearly indicates what they covered and what they did not) and I have credit card receipts for the two big walloping charges from my fertility clinic (and American Express statements with the charges on them to match).
Mean ole’ Uncle Sam scares me.
Have any of you ladies ever had enough medical expenses to deduct and been audited in the first place?
8 comments:
Yup - we are getting a nice check this year as well as a result of medical expenses. We've never been audited, so I have no direct experience on that.
IVF - the gift that take over your body, mind, and finances!
I simply asked my clinc to rpnit out a "log" Thats is what they call it) of all my financial transactions with them.
Since I am not organized I do have haev receipts. I will just call all the pharmacies and ask them to send me a print out of all my transactions with them in07-08.
BTW- I spent over 60K last year. So ,yea, I do worry about triggering an audit.
I think you most likely will not get audited. And if you do, the thing to do is to immediately hire an accountant and have them deal with the IRS. You are correct when you say that you do not want to deal with them on your own.
We have an accountant that handles all of our business/personal taxes, and he's told me a few tales. There is, apparently, a real difference in how you are treated if you deal with them on your own vs. having an accountant interface.
But seriously, don't fret. I would bet big money it won't happen.
Just the thought of all of this strikes panic in my heart. Hence ever since I got together with my husband and we tried to do our taxes together and realized it was going to be a mess and we were starting to fight (too much stress, even the law school loans scare me on turbotax), we've gone to an accountant. We figure a few hundred is worth saving our marriage...! So, I hear you and I think you are brave to do them yourself. Again, I am turning away from that HUGE file filled with medical receipts (sitting right to my left) totalling probably $54,000 this last year (that is my guess...). Good luck!
Ughhh. This is all such a pain, huh? This is the first year we have had enough to write off too. I'm guessing we are in the 60k range with 3 IVF cycles and part of 1 IUI. I have receipts for it all, but am trying to figure out how to do the mileage stuff since not all of our monitoring appointments had receipts. We are planning to have someone else do it for us and are just betting that we will be audited. Hopefully the cash back will all be worth it in the end. Good luck!
I worry that too. We had large write medical right offs in 2006 and 2007. In 2004 we recorded a dead baby with no official birth certificate. No audit yet, but if it comes, I will need to do a big of scrambling.
I have all my receipts too, but not that birth certificate. I have a list of transactions from my clinic, but they are very hard to read. I will cross my fingers that I never get their attention
We want to do it this year too, but like you, I've got some discrepancies as well. Hope I can get it all figured out.
Hey Sky, i am a bit behind on the commenting because.... gulp... I've been doing what you've been doing. It has taken me more than 6 hours and I am not even done! What a Pain in the Arse. How are you doing?
I am also scared of triggering the audit!
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