medical expenses

From hip replacements to pole dancing classes, here are some of the most outlandish deductions taxpayers have ever attempted to claim. You won't believe what these people tried that their accountants said wouldn't fly -- and you really won't believe what did (literally).

At many companies this is open-enrollment season -- your one chance a year to make changes to your health insurance. The easiest thing to do is just pick the same plan and coverage options you did last year. But often, that can be a big mistake.

A breast cancer diagnosis can be like an earthquake in the life of the patient and her family, but the medical community is there to help guide them. What's often hard to find is a monetary lifeline for those in danger of getting washed away by the financial tidal wave that can follow.

It's rare that the decision to itemize or take the standard deduction hinges on some of the smaller deductions that you can claim on your federal form 1040, Schedule A. This is because the deduction thresholds are fairly high. For 2010, the standard deduction for married couples filing a joint...

As health-care costs skyrocket, the ranks of uninsured Americans are growing at their fastest rate ever. A new report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities finds that 50.7 million people, or 16.7% of the population, had no health coverage in 2009, up from 46.4 million, or 15.4%, in 2008.

If you keep good records, deductions can be a great way to reduce your taxable income. Increasing your allowable deductions means the less tax you owe and the more money you get to keep. To maximize your deductions, it's a good idea to familiarize yourself with tax rules -- there are likely many...

Advocates for lower cost health care have for some time argued that arming consumers with data about the costs of medical procedures would help drive down prices. Insurers, however, have kept a tight lid on what they pay doctors and other health care providers, arguing that such information is...