Cognitive Impairment & Medical Deduction

[S T]

Cognitive Impairment by most health care standards is

1. Person is unable to perform at least two activities of daily living without substantial assistance from another individual for at least 90 days due to a loss of functional capacity. Activities of daily living are eating, toileting, transferring, bathing, dressing and continence.

2. Person requires substantial supervison to be protected from threats to health and safety due to sever cognitive impairment.

Qualification could involve "either" condition.

The above is from an Assisted Living/Alzheimers resource.

Now the question, T/P is in one of these care facilities for 2006 and into 2007 (now on Hospice). Care Facility will not provide breakdown of cost for medical type care , but we are looking to see if there is a possibility of using part of the cost for a medical deduction. Paid $27,000 for 2006 ($2250 per month). The facility did provide us with the fact that basic care was approximately $1,500 per month (might be construed as retirement living, but the facility is still a "care facility"). So at the very least maybe we could use 12 x $750 = $9,000.

The T/P needs assistance with bathing, dressing, medications, and meals, so does meet the cognitive impairment, just depends on the degree from mild to severe.

Thoughts about how much to deduct, if any would be appreciated.

Sandy

[Luis Mopeo]

TTB, page 4-7, under Lodging Expenses for Medical Care.

"The cost of meals and lodging at a hospital or similar institution is deductible if the principle reason for being there is to receive medical care."

Also under Nursing Home.

"The cost of living in a nursing home, including meals and lodging, is deductible if a principal reason for being there is to get medical care..."

When you need to break it out is for lodging along the line of a retirement community, where people go to live because they want to, not because they have no choice.