The PHIT Act of 2025 allows taxpayers to treat certain qualified fitness and exercise expenses as deductible medical expenses, up to an annual limit of \$1,000 or \$2,000 for joint filers, to encourage healthier lifestyles.
John Thune
Senator
SD
The Personal Health Investment Today Act of 2025 (PHIT Act) aims to promote public health by incentivizing healthier lifestyles. This bill allows taxpayers to treat certain qualified expenses for physical activity, fitness instruction, and exercise equipment as deductible medical expenses, up to annual limits of \$1,000 or \$2,000 depending on filing status. These provisions are designed to make fitness more financially accessible for individuals and families.
PHIT Act Allows $2,000 Fitness Deduction: Gym Dues and Equipment Now Count as Medical Expenses
The new Personal Health Investment Today Act of 2025 (PHIT Act) is trying to tackle public health—specifically obesity and related diseases—by offering a financial incentive to get moving. In plain language, this bill changes the tax code to let you treat certain fitness expenses like medical costs, potentially boosting your tax deduction.
The Gym Membership Tax Break
Starting in the next tax year after this bill becomes law, you can count “qualified sports and fitness expenses” when calculating medical deductions. This covers things like your monthly gym membership fees, the cost of fitness classes (think yoga, spin, or martial arts), and even instruction in physical activity. The goal is to make healthy habits less of a budget stretch. For an individual taxpayer, the maximum you can claim under this new category is $1,000 per year. If you file jointly or as a head of household, that limit doubles to $2,000.
The Fine Print on Facilities and Gear
Before you start deducting your country club dues, know this: the bill is strict about what counts. A facility must primarily offer instruction or equipment for physical fitness. It explicitly excludes private clubs owned by members and places focused on activities like golf, hunting, sailing, or riding. This means your local community center or a commercial gym is likely in, but a yacht club is definitely out. The bill also has rules for equipment. You can only deduct gear used exclusively for fitness, exercise, or sports. If you buy a new piece of equipment—say, a set of dumbbells or a treadmill—you are capped at deducting $250 for that single item. This $250 limit is key; it means the tax benefit won't cover the full cost of high-end home gym equipment, but it will help offset the cost of running shoes or a fitness tracker. Also, for busy people who use the standard deduction, this won’t help much; this benefit is only available if you itemize your deductions.
What This Means for Your Wallet
For a working parent trying to budget for a family gym membership and a few sets of kids’ sports gear, the $2,000 cap could be a significant help in lowering their taxable income. For example, if a family spends $1,800 a year on a family gym membership and $200 on new running shoes, that entire $2,000 could now be treated as a medical expense. This is a direct financial nudge toward preventative health. However, the $250 cap per piece of equipment is a practical challenge. If you drop $1,500 on a high-tech stationary bike, only $250 of that purchase will qualify for the deduction, which might feel like a minor break compared to the total cost. Similarly, the requirement that fitness clothing must be only used for that specific physical activity could lead to complicated record-keeping for taxpayers and headaches for the IRS trying to enforce it.