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Are Medicare Premiums Tax Deductible?

If you itemize on your return, they are — after all medical expenses pass a certain threshold

6-minute read

Article 3 out of 11 in Balancing Costs

Kimberly Lankford and Tony Pugh,

Updated March 10, 2026

AARP

En español

Published October 27, 2022

/ Updated March 10, 2026

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Jon Krause

Key takeaways

2025 Medicare premiums are tax deductible for some.
Beneficiaries must itemize on tax return to be eligible.
Lots of deductible medical expenses. Some items, never.
The self-employed also may be able to deduct premiums.
If you pay medical expenses with an HSA, you can’t deduct.

Yes, your Medicare premiums can be tax deductible as a medical expense if you itemize deductions on your federal income tax return or take the standard deduction and are self-employed.

But your premiums alone won’t put you over the threshold to deduct medical expenses paid in a calendar year. You must also gather information on what you and your dependents spent for copayments; coinsurance; deductibles including hospitalization, doctor visits and prescriptions; and the IRS’s list of acceptable medical expenses.

Then you add in your various Medicare premiums, and if the total is more than 7.5 percent of your adjusted gross income (AGI), you’ll be able to deduct the excess. If a Medicare Advantage, Medigap plan or any other insurance has reimbursed you, that amount cannot be added to your total medical expenses.

If your AGI is $75,000, you can deduct medical expenses in excess of $5,625. If you had $5,000 in eligible medical expenses, you can’t deduct anything in your income tax return; however, if your medical expenses totaled $7,000, you can deduct $1,375.

What are the rules for itemizing deductions?

Whether you want to itemize rather than taking the standard deduction will depend on your total deductions, often beyond medical expenses.

Unless you’re self-employed, you can deduct medical expenses only if you itemize rather than take the standard deduction. To make this worthwhile, your total itemized deductions — including but not limited to charitable gifts; eligible medical expenses; up to $40,000 in local and state income or sales taxes and property taxes; and tax-deductible mortgage interest — must be more than the easier-to-claim standard deduction.

You have until the April 15, 2026, tax-filing deadline to deduct eligible premiums and other expenses you paid in 2025.

What medical expenses are tax deductible?

If you qualify, you can deduct Medicare and other related insurance premiums when you itemize, including:

Medicare Part A, although most people don’t have to pay Part A premiums.

Medicare Part B, which was $185 a month for most people in 2025 and is $202.90 a month in 2026. The premiums can still be tax deductible even if they’re deducted automatically from your Social Security benefits. If you have to pay a high-income surcharge for Part B premiums — also called the income-related monthly adjustment amount (IRMAA) — your entire premium can still be tax deductible because the surcharge is considered a higher premium.

Medicare Part D prescription drug plans, including the high-income surcharge.

Medicare Advantage, the private insurer alternative to original Medicare.

Medicare supplement insurance, the private plans also known as Medigap.

Long-term care insurance. In addition to Medicare-related premiums, you can also deduct a portion of premiums you pay for eligible long-term care insurance policies based on your age.

Married couples filing a joint tax return can each deduct their long-term care premiums up to the limits for their age.

Additionally, out-of-pocket medical expenses can be tax deductible if other insurance, such as Medigap, Medicare Advantage or retiree coverage doesn’t cover the full costs. If you worry about coming up shy of the threshold on your medical expenses, couples can explore filing two returns — married filing separately rather than jointly — or anyone can time the payment of expenses to bundle them in a single year.

Some of these eligible costs may include:

Coinsurance, copayments and deductibles for any part of Medicare. However, late-enrollment penalties added to Part B or Part D premiums generally aren’t treated as deductible medical expenses, so ask a tax professional.

Most dental, hearing and vision expenses, such as contact lenses, eyeglasses, routine eye exams, dental procedures, dentures, routine dental exams, hearing aids and hearing exams. You also can include the cost of eye surgery to treat defective vision, such as laser eye surgery or refractive surgery to correct myopia or nearsightedness.

Home improvements to accommodate a disability. For example, you can deduct the cost of constructing wheelchair ramps, installing bathroom grab bars and handrails, and widening doorways and hallways. If the improvement increases the value of the home, a portion of the expense will not be tax deductible.

Medical equipment, including crutches or a wheelchair, that Medicare may not cover in full. Medical supplies such as bandages are also tax deductible.

Psychologist or psychiatrist care costs, even if they exceed Medicare’s coverage limits for mental health benefits.

Services that Medicare doesn’t cover, such as acupuncture or chiropractor visits beyond the limited definition of Medicare coverage.

Many travel expenses to receive medical care. But lodging costs may have a daily maximum.

See IRS Publication 502, Medical and Dental Expenses, for a full list of eligible expenses and rules.

What medical expenses are not tax deductible?

You can’t deduct the following expenses:

Cosmetic surgery to improve your appearance unless the surgery addresses problems resulting from an accident, deformity or disease. This includes teeth whitening.

Medical marijuana, even if it’s legal in your state, because it’s not legal under federal law.

Other nonprescription medications, except for insulin — even though those expenses are eligible for reimbursement if you contribute to a flexible spending account (FSA), health savings account (HSA) or similar pre-tax accounts. That includes herbal, nutritional or vitamin supplements unless a medical provider recommends them as treatment for a specific medical condition a physician has diagnosed.

Can I deduct Medicare premiums if self-employed?

If you’re self-employed, you may be able to deduct premiums for Medicare or other eligible health insurance from your income without having to itemize or meet the 7.5 percent threshold. Even if you were primarily retired but did some consulting work, you may be eligible to deduct all or part of your premiums, but your other out-of-pocket medical costs would have to qualify for the medical expense deduction.

First, your business must have made a profit after subtracting other expenses.

You can qualify for the self-employed health insurance deduction only if both you and your spouse were ineligible to participate in an employer-subsidized health plan. The calculation is more complicated if you received a subsidy for buying health insurance on the federal or a state insurance marketplace.

If you qualify, you can deduct premiums for Medicare Part B and Part A if you’re required to pay them, as well as Part D, Medicare Advantage and Medigap premiums, and eligible long-term care insurance premiums. You can claim this deduction as an adjustment to income on Schedule 1 when filing your Form 1040.

Like other deductions, your eligibility can vary by month, allowing you to take a partial-year deduction if you turned 65 this year and started paying your Medicare premiums.

Can I use money from my health savings account?

You can withdraw money tax-free from a health savings account (HSA) to pay Medicare premiums after you turn 65, including premiums for Medicare Part A, Part B, Part D prescription drug plans and Medicare Advantage. However, the IRS doesn’t allow tax-free HSA withdrawals for Medigap premiums.

You can’t make new contributions to an HSA after you enroll in Medicare, but you can make tax-free withdrawals for other eligible medical expenses at any age. You can’t take a tax deduction and tax-free HSA withdrawals for the same expenses.

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This story, first published Oct. 27, 2022, was updated with changes, including 2025 tax law information.

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About the authors

Kimberly Lankford is a contributing writer who covers Medicare and personal finance. She wrote about insurance, Medicare, retirement and taxes for more than 20 years at Kiplinger’s Personal Finance and has written for The Washington Post and Boston Globe. She received the personal finance Best in Business award from the Society of American Business Editors and Writers and the New York State Society of CPAs’ excellence in financial journalism award for her guide to Medicare.

Tony Pugh is an award-winning writer and editor covering Medicare for AARP. He has also covered Medicare for Bloomberg Law and as a national correspondent for Knight Ridder/McClatchy Newspapers.