Title: PHIT Act
Policy area: Taxation

Summary:
Personal Health Investment Today Act or the PHIT Act
This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a medical care tax deduction for qualified sports and fitness expenses. The deduction applies to amounts paid for: (1) fitness facility memberships, (2) physical exercise or activity programs, and (3) safety equipment for use in a physical exercise or activity program.
The overall deduction is limited to $500 per year (twice the amount in the case of a joint return or a head of household), and a deduction for safety equipment may not exceed $250. The bill requires the limits to be adjusted for inflation after 2019.
The deduction does not include expenses for golf, hunting, sailing, riding, and videos or books.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6312 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6312

  To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat certain amounts 
 paid for physical activity, fitness, and exercise as amounts paid for 
                             medical care.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              July 6, 2018

    Mr. Smith of Missouri (for himself and Mr. Kind) introduced the 
 following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat certain amounts 
 paid for physical activity, fitness, and exercise as amounts paid for 
                             medical care.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Personal Health Investment Today 
Act'' or the ``PHIT Act.''

SEC. 2. CERTAIN AMOUNTS PAID FOR PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, FITNESS, AND 
              EXERCISE TREATED AS AMOUNTS PAID FOR MEDICAL CARE.

    (a) In General.--Section 213(d)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986 is amended by striking ``or'' at the end of subparagraph (C), by 
striking the period at the end of subparagraph (D) and inserting ``, 
or'', and by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(E) for qualified sports and fitness expenses.''.
    (b) Qualified Sports and Fitness Expenses.--Section 213(d) of such 
Code is amended by adding at the end the following paragraph:
            ``(12) Qualified sports and fitness expenses.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The term `qualified sports and 
                fitness expenses' means amounts paid for--
                            ``(i) membership at a fitness facility,
                            ``(ii) participation or instruction in a 
                        program of physical exercise or physical 
                        activity, or
                            ``(iii) safety equipment for use in a 
                        program (including a self-directed program) of 
                        physical exercise or physical activity.
                    ``(B) Dollar limitations.--
                            ``(i) Overall limitation.--The aggregate 
                        amount treated as qualified sports and fitness 
                        expenses with respect to any taxpayer for any 
                        taxable year shall not exceed $500 (twice such 
                        amount in the case of a joint return or a head 
                        of household (as defined in section 2(b))).
                            ``(ii) Safety equipment.--The amount 
                        treated as qualified sports and fitness 
                        expenses with respect to any item of safety 
                        equipment described in subparagraph (A)(iii) 
                        shall not exceed $250.
                    ``(C) Certain exclusions.--
                            ``(i) In general.--Golf, hunting, sailing, 
                        and riding shall not be treated as a physical 
                        exercise or physical activity.
                            ``(ii) Exercise videos, etc.--Qualified 
                        sports and fitness expenses shall not include 
                        videos, books, or similar materials.
                    ``(D) Fitness facility defined.--For purposes of 
                subparagraph (A)(i), the term `fitness facility' means 
                a facility--
                            ``(i) providing instruction in a program of 
                        physical exercise or physical activity, 
                        offering facilities for the preservation, 
                        maintenance, encouragement, or development of 
                        physical fitness, or serving as the site of 
                        such a program of a State or local government,
                            ``(ii) which is not a private club owned 
                        and operated by its members,
                            ``(iii) which does not offer facilities for 
                        any activity described in subparagraph (C)(i),
                            ``(iv) whose health or fitness facility is 
                        not incidental to its overall function and 
                        purpose, and
                            ``(v) which is fully compliant with 
                        applicable State and Federal anti-
                        discrimination laws.
                    ``(E) Programs which include components other than 
                physical exercise and physical activity.--Rules similar 
                to the rules of paragraph (6) shall apply in the case 
                of any program that includes physical exercise or 
                physical activity and also other components. For 
                purposes of the preceding sentence, travel and 
                accommodations shall be treated as an other component.
                    ``(F) Inflation adjustment.--In the case of any 
                taxable year beginning in a calendar year after 2019, 
                the $500 amount in subparagraph (B)(i) and the $250 
                amount in subparagraph (B)(ii) shall each be increased 
                by an amount equal to--
                            ``(i) such dollar amount, multiplied by
                            ``(ii) the cost-of-living adjustment 
                        determined under section 1(f)(3) for the 
                        calendar year in which such taxable year 
                        begins, determined by substituting `calendar 
                        year 2018' for `calendar year 2016' in 
                        subparagraph (A)(ii) thereof.
                If any increase determined under the preceding sentence 
                is not a multiple of $10, such increase shall be 
                rounded to the next lowest multiple of $10.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this subsection shall 
apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2018.
                                 <all>