Updated December 29, 2025, 1:09pm ET
- A viral social media post falsely claims that President Donald Trump signed the “Home Gym Exemption Act.”
- There’s a different bill, known as the PHIT Act, intended to make certain fitness expenses tax-deductible. Despite being brought up multiple times in Congress, it has not become law.
In 2026, Americans might see larger tax refunds, but it won’t be linked to any home gym equipment.
A Facebook post from December 24, shared by a well-followed account, indicated that Trump had signed the “Home Gym Exemption Act.” However, investigations found no evidence supporting this claim.
According to the post, “Squat racks, barbells, and plates are now 100% tax deductible as medical expenses.” A similar message circulated on X recently, gaining significant attention. Review of presidential actions confirms this information is not accurate.
The Facebook account later acknowledged that their original post was meant as satire.
Similar proposals have appeared in discussions around the “Big Beautiful Bill.”
No such bill has been signed by Trump; however, the PHIT Act was introduced again for at least the fifth time this year.
This year’s version of the PHIT Act, presented in March, aimed to include certain sports and fitness expenses to qualify for tax-deductible medical costs.
The bill was sent to a congressional committee but didn’t progress further, although there were discussions about similar features in the larger “Big Beautiful Bill.” The House version had included a change to the Health Savings Account (HSA) tax regulations to allow payment for qualified fitness expenses as medical expenses, but this part was removed in the Senate’s final version.
The Health and Fitness Association, a global non-profit, expressed disappointment that the provision rooted in the PHIT Act wasn’t included in the Senate bill. They argued it could have benefited many seeking to stay active amidst rising chronic health issues and financial pressures.
(Note: This article has been updated to clarify the satirical nature of the bill.)
