My brother was born with a severe birth defect called Cloacal Bladder exstrophy. As a result he was given a surgical procedure where his ureturs from his kidneys were tied internally to his colorectal area. He also has a severe learning disability and his IQ was deemed very low at an early age to the point of him being placed in special education classes thruout school. When he was transferred to the 9th grade in high school, the school system failed to follow up on his special needs requirements and he was placed in regular classes with normally functioning peers. He lasted less than one school year and dropped out due to his learning deficiencies.

Since dropping out of high school he has managed to hold down several odd jobs over the past few years, but as he has aged his problem with incontinancy has increased dramatically due to the surgical procedure I spoke of above. He is now 35 years old, and requires trips to the bathroom on the order of every few minutes to prevent himself from having "accidents". His ability to hold a job has been severely impacted as a result due to employers not permitting him to take bathroom breaks as often as he requires.

This, coupled with his learning disability, has all but eliminated him from finding or holding a job as his condition worsens with each passing year. He has been living with me for the past 14 month and I have been his sole provider where food, clothing, shelter and neccessities are concerned.

We are currently awaiting the outcome of his social securrity disability application, and I need to know if I can claim him on my 2008 return since I am providing for him as I am.

I also need to know what, if anything, I can claim or deduct as expenses other than the standard exemption if I am indeed allowed to claim him.

Many Thanks in advance!
Additional Details
Added for clarity: My brother has lived with me for all of 2008, has not worked nor earned any income since moving in with me. I'm also wondering about being able to file as Head of Household as well.