Purchasing catheters with a FSA?

[Jax]

Had you said, "relieves some chance of decompression illness," I'd buy that. But the fact that EVERY man I've ever known to get a UTI got it from a P-valve, I'd throw that out the window.

+1 ... I've only heard of 3 male UTI's ... all attributed to cath usage. They also all sounded like truly miserable experiences.

Hmmm . . . well, it works for girls . . . that urine retention thing is bad juju.

[Greenwood_60]

I had a UTI along with a kidney stone. Completely not diving related in any way, entirely dehydration related.

[Merlin Rhoda]

I had a UTI along with a kidney stone. Completely not diving related in any way, entirely dehydration related.

The odds of a cath related UTI based soley on the small sample set of first hand reports I have heard just dropped to 0.75 ...

[DA Aquamaster]

You need to qualify it with age, and .... Ummm... certain activities....but at age 45 when I got the mother of all UTI and kidney infections, the doctor suggested it was exceedingly rare for a male my age to get a UTI. The primary suspects on his list started sounding like the list of questions the state pecker checker starts asking people with STDs. I preempted that with a discussion of pee valves and how they are used and that then sounded more plausible to him than my fairly plain vanilla sex life.

In older men UTIs apparently become more common, and it's apparently more common in men who might, for example, have amorous feelings toward the pool guy and act on them.

[Jax]

Wow.

As someone who spent a career in
public accounting including time in the ethics department of a Big Six firm, I will give my opinion that DA (Larry) is pretty much right on target. Cases can always be made for things on the fringes of the law that may violate only the spirit rather than the letter of the law. Those are called loopholes, and they are what some tax accountants and lawyers get paid big bucks to find. But that does not make them ethical, and very often the line is crossed into illegal. While the chances of being caught may be low and the penalties involved usually toothless, let's not confuse "getting away with something" with "its legitimate."

One more thing to add to those trying to make a case that condom caths for diving should be considered preventive medicine, I suffered a terrible and serious UTI once when my tubing kinked. That medical problem would not have existed without the pee valve. So please stop trying to convince yourself that the condoms help with hydration. You could dive wet and pee all you want. Your drysuit may keep you warmer and therefore avoid pneumonia, but that doesn't make it medically necessary or deductible.

Jiminy crickets, guys! Talk about making a mountain out of a molehill!

Look, FSAs are a wonderful way for people who otherwise cannot take medical off their taxes can get a bit of a break.

It used to be that all KINDS of over the counter stuff could be taken off, just claim it. Then the gov't found out that people were selling OTC stuff just to clear their account. All a doctor / phys asst does is legitimize your need. I now have a prescription for OTC stuff which I use in lieu of Rx drugs. It just allows me to reclaim my money.

Ah, I hadnt thought of that... Reading guages is a chore sometimes. Thanks for the loophole! LOL

Absolutely, sports Rx eyewear is deductable. My readers were covered, no question.

[darkdiver211]

come on folks lets quiet DICKING around and get on with the tax fraud.

[Jaydubya]

come on folks lets quit DICKING around and get on with the tax fraud.

LOL

Too late. The deadline for commiting this tax fraud was the 31st.