Major medical (GMM)
Cover for the big bills
Group major medical is a second layer on top of hospital and surgical cover. When a long stay or a major operation runs past your GHS plan’s limits, GMM helps pay the rest, usually with a small share paid by the employee.
What it is
When the bill runs past the limits
Hospital and surgical plans pay each part of a bill up to a set limit. For most stays that is enough. For a long admission, cancer treatment or complex surgery, it may not be.
GMM picks up the eligible amount above those limits, up to its own limit. The employee usually pays a co-insurance share, often 10% to 20%, and some plans have a deductible first.
How it works
A second layer, not a separate plan
Bought with hospital cover
GMM is sold as a rider to GHS, and most insurers ask for it to match your hospital plan’s level. Some build major medical into their hospital plans instead.
What GHS coversPays above the basic limits
Once a claim goes past the GHS limits, GMM pays the eligible balance up to its own limit, from about S$15,000 to S$100,000 on the SME packages we compare.
The employee shares the cost
Co-insurance means the employee pays a share of the amount GMM covers. It keeps premiums down while still protecting against the largest bills.
Co-insurance explainedGHS and GMM
How the two layers split the work
Think of GHS as the everyday hospital cover and GMM as the backstop for the rare, expensive claim.
| GHS (hospital and surgical) | GMM (major medical) | |
|---|---|---|
| Role | Pays the usual hospital bill | Pays the part of a large bill above the GHS limits |
| How it’s bought | On its own, as the core cover | Only with GHS, usually at the same plan level |
| How it pays | Each part of the bill up to its own limit | The eligible balance, up to one overall limit |
| Employee’s share | Usually nothing within the limits, unless the plan has a co-payment | Often 10% to 20% co-insurance, sometimes a deductible |
| Typical claims | Most admissions, day surgery and short stays | Long stays, cancer treatment, major surgery and intensive care |
Is GMM right for your team?
Worth adding if
- Your hospital plan has modest limits and you want a safety net for serious illness
- Some of your team are older, or you want cover that holds up through long treatment
- You’d like to keep the base plan level and still protect against rare, costly claims
- You’d rather staff didn’t face a large balance after a long stay
In practice
How a large bill is shared
01
The GHS plan pays first
Each part of the eligible bill is paid up to its GHS limit: the ward, the surgery, intensive care and so on.
02
GMM takes the balance
What is left above those limits goes to GMM. It pays the eligible amount after any deductible, less the co-insurance share.
03
The employee pays the rest
The employee pays the co-insurance share and anything outside the plan, such as a ward above their entitlement. MediShield Life or their own Integrated Shield Plan may help with part of it.
Questions about GMM
Major medical, answered
No. Major medical is sold as an extra layer on top of group hospital and surgical cover, and most insurers ask for it to match your hospital plan.
Most do, but not all. Some top plans already pay as charged up to a high yearly limit, so no separate major medical layer is offered with them. Some insurers build major medical into their hospital plans instead of selling it separately.
It is the share of a claim the employee pays. With 20% co-insurance on a major medical claim, the insurer pays 80% of the eligible amount and the employee pays 20%.
A fixed amount the employee pays before the plan starts paying. Not every major medical plan has one, and we point it out when we compare quotes.
It depends on the plan and your team’s ages. The calculator’s standard hospital level includes major medical at every insurer it prices, so it gives you a ballpark with it included. Exact quotes show it line by line.
Mostly not. It pays for hospital stays and surgery. Some plans extend to specific outpatient treatments, such as cancer treatment or dialysis, and we check this for each quote.
Compare major medical across insurers
Tell us about your team. We lay out plans from our panel of 14 insurers side by side and send exact quotes within the next working day. Our advice is free: the insurer pays our commission.