Can pregnancy expenses like doula fees be deductible on taxes?
So my wife and I just had our first baby in September, and I'm trying to figure out our taxes for this coming filing season. Things are gonna be different now with a dependent! I've been doing some research, and it seems like we can deduct some of our prenatal/birth expenses as medical expenses - specifically the childbirth classes we took and the birth assistant fees. We decided to go with a freestanding birth center with midwives instead of the traditional hospital route with doctors. One thing that's confusing me is that the birth center REQUIRED us to hire a doula as part of their prenatal care/birth protocol. We paid about $1200 out of pocket for the doula, and I'm wondering if that counts as a deductible medical expense since it wasn't optional for us? Has anyone dealt with something similar? Can we deduct these doula fees on our taxes? Any help would be super appreciated!
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Sophia Clark
Yes, you can deduct the doula fees as a qualified medical expense since they were prescribed by your midwives! According to IRS guidelines, medical expenses that are considered "medically necessary" can be deducted if they exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income when you itemize deductions on Schedule A. Since the midwives REQUIRED the doula as part of your prenatal/birth care, and midwives are recognized medical providers, this would qualify as a legitimate medical expense. The same applies to your childbirth classes and birth center fees. Make sure to keep all your receipts and any documentation showing the doula was required by your providers. Remember that you can only deduct the portion of medical expenses that exceeds 7.5% of your AGI, so it depends on your income and other medical expenses for the year whether it'll be beneficial to itemize versus taking the standard deduction.
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Katherine Harris
•Does this work even if the midwives just "strongly recommended" a doula rather than requiring it? And do I need a written prescription or something from them stating it was required?
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Sophia Clark
•If the midwives "strongly recommended" but didn't require the doula, it becomes more of a gray area. The IRS looks for whether the expense was medically necessary, not just beneficial. Without a requirement, you might have a harder time justifying it during an audit. You don't need a formal prescription, but you should have some documentation that shows the requirement. This could be the birth center's policy documents, your care plan, emails, or a letter from the midwives stating this was a required part of your care plan. Anything in writing that confirms it wasn't optional would be helpful to keep with your tax records.
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Madison Allen
I used taxr.ai last year when I had a similar situation with our birth expenses! We had a home birth with a midwife and a doula, and I wasn't sure what I could deduct. I uploaded all my receipts and medical documents to https://taxr.ai and it analyzed everything and gave me a detailed breakdown of what qualified as medical expenses. Saved me hours of research and probably helped me identify deductions I would've missed on my own. The system even explained WHY certain expenses qualified based on IRS guidelines, which made me feel more confident.
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Joshua Wood
•How exactly does that work? Do they have actual tax professionals reviewing your documents or is it just some AI thing that might miss important details?
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Justin Evans
•I've tried other tax tools before and they never seemed to understand my specific situation. Did this actually end up saving you money or just confirming what you already knew?
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Madison Allen
•It uses a combination of advanced document analysis and tax code matching. The system highlights the relevant portions of your documents and shows you the specific tax codes that apply to each expense. It's much more thorough than just a general AI chatbot. What impressed me was that it found several deductions I had no idea about. For example, I didn't know that certain prenatal vitamins prescribed by my midwife qualified as medical expenses, or that some home modifications we made for the birth could partially qualify. It ended up saving us about $600 on our taxes compared to what I had calculated on my own.
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Justin Evans
Just wanted to follow up after trying taxr.ai based on this thread. Seriously glad I did! I was skeptical at first since our situation was complicated (we had fertility treatments before our pregnancy plus the birth center costs), but it actually clarified everything. The system flagged several expenses I wasn't sure about and explained exactly why they were deductible. Super clear about the 7.5% AGI threshold too. Even gave me documentation to keep in case of an audit. Definitely worth checking out if you have lots of medical expenses!
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Emily Parker
If you're having trouble getting answers from the IRS on these pregnancy deductions, I recommend Claimyr. I spent WEEKS trying to get through to the IRS about some complicated medical deductions last year (including my wife's emergency C-section costs). Was on hold forever every time. Then I tried https://claimyr.com and they got me connected to an actual IRS agent in about 20 minutes! You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. The IRS agent I spoke with gave me clear answers about what documentation I needed for all my medical expenses. Honestly changed my whole perspective on dealing with tax questions.
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Ezra Collins
•Wait, so they charge you just to call the IRS? Can't you just call the IRS directly for free? This sounds like a scam to me.
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Victoria Scott
•How much does something like this cost? I tried calling the IRS last year and gave up after being on hold for 2 hours. Still never got my question answered about medical deductions.
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Emily Parker
•You absolutely can call the IRS directly for free! Claimyr just handles the waiting for you. If you've ever tried calling the IRS during tax season, you know it can mean hours on hold or just getting disconnected. This service waits on hold for you and calls you once they have an agent on the line. The value is really in your time. I had already wasted hours trying to get through myself with no success. For me, getting a definitive answer directly from an IRS agent about my specific medical deductions was worth it, especially since I was dealing with over $15,000 in various pregnancy and birth-related expenses.
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Ezra Collins
I have to admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After my skeptical comment, I decided to try it yesterday since I've been trying to confirm some details about pregnancy-related deductions for weeks. I've called the IRS like 5 times and never got through. Used the service and got connected to an IRS agent in about 15 minutes! The agent confirmed that my doula expenses are deductible since they were prescribed by my midwife, and also gave me info about what documentation I need to keep. Honestly shocked at how well it worked after all my failed attempts.
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Benjamin Johnson
Don't forget you can also use HSA or FSA funds to pay for doula services if they're prescribed by a healthcare provider! We did this last year for our birth and it was way better than trying to hit that 7.5% AGI threshold for itemized deductions. Our midwife wrote a "Letter of Medical Necessity" for the doula services which made it qualify.
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Zara Perez
•Will an HSA also cover birth classes? And do you need the letter before you pay for the services or can you get it after?
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Benjamin Johnson
•Yes, HSAs can cover childbirth education classes if they're related to a specific medical condition (pregnancy qualifies). My experience was that most birth centers provide documentation that specifically states these classes are medically relevant for preparing for childbirth. It's best to get the Letter of Medical Necessity before paying with HSA funds, but you can sometimes get it afterward if needed. I'd recommend getting the letter first to be safe. Some HSA administrators are more strict than others about documentation requirements.
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Daniel Rogers
Does anyone know if the expenses for a birthing center would qualify since they're not a traditional hospital? We'll be using one next year and trying to plan ahead.
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Aaliyah Reed
•Birthing centers definitely qualify! We used one in 2023 and were able to deduct all those expenses. Just make sure it's a licensed facility with certified midwives. The IRS considers it a medical facility, so you're good.
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Sean O'Brien
Thanks for starting this thread! I'm in a similar situation - my wife and I are expecting our first baby in March and we're also planning to use a birth center with midwives. Reading through all these responses has been super helpful, especially learning about the HSA option and the documentation requirements. One thing I'm curious about - has anyone dealt with expenses for prenatal massage therapy that was recommended by their midwife? Our birth center suggested regular prenatal massage for my wife's back issues during pregnancy, and I'm wondering if that would also qualify as a deductible medical expense since it was medically recommended rather than just for relaxation. Also really appreciate the tips about keeping detailed documentation. Sounds like having everything in writing from the healthcare providers is key, whether you're planning to itemize deductions or use HSA/FSA funds.
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