Rev. Rul. 75-318

Advice has been requested whether amounts paid by a taxpayer to purchase braille books and magazines for his blind dependent child may be deducted as expenses for medical care under section 213 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954.

The taxpayer's blind child, who attends a school for the blind, has learned to read braille. The child's textbooks are generally provided by the school, but many of the child's other books are not available unless purchased individually, so the taxpayer has purchased a number of books and has subscribed to a number of braille magazines for the child.

Section 262 of the Code states that, except as otherwise expressly provided, no deduction shall be allowed for personal, living, or family expenses.

Section 213(a) of the Code expressly allows, subject to certain limitations not relevant here, a deduction for expenses paid during the taxable year, not compensated for by insurance or otherwise, for the medical care of the taxpayer, his spouse, and his dependents. Section 213(e) provides, in part, that the term "medical care" includes amounts paid for the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease, or for the purpose of affecting any structure or function of the body.

Section 1.213-1(e)(1)(ii) of the Income Tax Regulations provides, in part, that deductions for expenditures for medical care will be confined strictly to expenses incurred primarily for the prevention or alleviation of a physical or mental defect or illness.

Where an item purchased in a special form primarily for the alleviation of a physical defect (such as braille editions of books and magazines purchased for the blind), is one that is ordinarily used for personal, living, and family purposes, the excess of the cost of the special form over the normal cost of the item is an expense for medical care within the meaning of section 213 of the Code. See Rev. Rul. 70-606, 1970-2 C.B. 66, which deals with an automobile specially designed for transporting individuals confined to wheelchairs and holds that the amount paid by the taxpayer for the automobile that is attributable to its special design is a medical expense under section 213.

Accordingly, in the instant case, the excess of the amounts paid by the taxpayer to purchase braille books and magazines over the cost of their regular printed editions is an expense for medical care that qualifies for deduction under section 213 of the Code.