Endless Paperwork

I am totally anal about paperwork though it saved me several times during the lawsuits and dealings with Medicare, Social Security Administration and the lawsuits.

Though the years, I have developed a system that might be helpful for those who are also ill and dealing with a lot of paper.

During the year, I write in a paper binder everything related to my illness including the mileage to rehab, doctors and hospitals which can be medical deduction. I also note my out of pocket costs for medicine, rehab, doctors and insurance monthly premiums. I have a separate page for each of these. 

I keep each receipt or paid bill, bank statements, investment statements, notices of payments by insurance companies, health insurance premiums statements in separate piles controlled by rubber bands.

At the end of the year, I add up all the columns, finish organizing all the plies and wrap them all up to take to our wonderful tax person.

When it is actually time for our tax appointment, I have everything ready. I don’t have to go searching through huge stacks of papers, I just add up all the columns and report those numbers.  At the end of the year, the paperwork for that year usually fills a large bag from a department store – with handles. I bring it with me to the tax meeting but since I have the cover sheets of everything listed, that is all that she usually needs to list every possible deduction.

It took me a while to set up my system but it works for me. The paperwork can become overwhelming. I have a whole separate file for all the paperwork from the lawsuits, lawyers, SSI, life insurance and the rest of the mess from the miserable hell from 2004-2008. It is organized. Through the years, I have had to go back into those files to retrieve some needed morsel of information. I am grateful that I have kept and filed everything.