SELF EMPLOYED AND HEALTH INSURANCE

Self-employed taxpayers can deduct their health insurance. Not as a business expense but as a other deduction which is on page one of the tax return. In defining what is deductible you are allowed to include Medicare Part B and D  premiums. The question always was "what about the spouse?"

The IRS has just revised their thinking on the deduction for spouses of self employed taxpayers. Publication 535 this year says that Medicare premiums have to be paid in the name of the self-employed person to qualify for the deduction. IRS has informally said that the revision was made to make it clear that a spouse’s Part B and D premiums don’t count if the spouse isn’t self-employed.

Strangely this is just in the publication but not in an official guidance.