Key takeaways
- A company medical card is a group policy your employer owns and renews every year; Great Eastern's group hospital and surgical plan covers full-time, actively-at-work employees, so cover normally stops when you leave the job.
- Company plans often have lower limits: Great Eastern's GREAT BizCare SME plans set overall annual limits of RM30,000 to RM150,000, against RM3,000,000 a year on its GREAT MediValue personal medical rider.
- At every new job you are a new joiner again: in Great Eastern's group sheet that means a 30-day wait for illness, 120 days for specified illnesses such as stones, cysts and hernias, and pre-existing conditions excluded for the first 12 months.
- You cannot be paid twice for one bill: both group and personal policies exclude amounts payable by other insurance, so the second insurer looks at the uncovered balance with the first insurer's or employer's settlement details.
- If you are retrenched, EIS pays a Job Search Allowance for 3 to 6 months when you qualify and apply within 60 days, but no part of EIS pays hospital bills.
- To keep a medical card affordable after 60, Great Eastern's RM20,000 deductible with Retirement Option (entry up to 59 next birthday) converts to RM5,000 at 60 next birthday without further underwriting.
My company already gives me a medical card. Do I still need my own?
Usually yes, and not because the company plan is bad. The problem is that it is not yours. Great Eastern says it plainly in its guide to choosing a health plan: group medical insurance is a good benefit, but it "usually ends when you leave your job", and it may give lower cover than you would need for major medical expenses. The EPF makes the same point in its insurance guide (20 February 2026): your own policy can fill the gaps, "especially if you change jobs or if your company's claim limits are restricted".
Here is how the two compare, using Great Eastern's own documents as the example. Your company's plan may be with another insurer, so check the benefit schedule HR gives you.
| Point | Company medical card (group plan) | Your own medical card |
|---|---|---|
| Who owns it | Your employer, as policyholder | You |
| Who is covered | Full-time employees who are actively at work, aged 17 to 65 next birthday in the group GHS disclosure sheet; spouse and children only if the company adds them | You and the family members you insure |
| When it ends | When you leave the group, or when the company does not renew the yearly policy | At the expiry age in your policy, as long as premiums or charges are paid |
| Overall annual limit | RM30,000 to RM150,000 in the GREAT BizCare SME plans | RM3,000,000 a year in GREAT MediValue, with no lifetime limit |
| Who decides the benefits | The company, which can change them at each policy anniversary or renewal | You, when you buy or change the policy |
| Premium | Paid by the company and reviewed by the insurer at every renewal | Paid by you; not guaranteed, and it rises with age |
| After you change jobs | Gone; the new employer's plan starts you again as a new joiner | Carries on unchanged |
Is there a case for waiting? If you are young, your company plan is generous and money is tight, you can start with a plan that has a high deductible and sits behind the company card (more on that below), instead of a full plan. What I would not do is wait until you are leaving the job or until a doctor finds something. A personal plan asks health questions, and conditions you already have may be excluded or loaded; my guide to buying insurance with a health condition explains how that works.
What happens to my company medical card when I resign, am retrenched or retire?
The group plan covers employees of the policyholder who are "full-time actively at work". Once you are off the payroll you are no longer in that group, whatever the reason you left. The exact last day of cover is set by your company's master policy, so ask HR in writing rather than guessing.
| Situation | Your company medical card | What else applies |
|---|---|---|
| You resign | Ends with your employment; ask HR for the exact date | PERKESO's list of loss of employment for EIS does not include an ordinary resignation, so there is no Job Search Allowance |
| You are retrenched, take a VSS or the company closes | Ends with your employment | EIS pays a Job Search Allowance for 3 to 6 months if you meet the contribution conditions and apply within 60 days. It replaces income; it does not pay hospital bills |
| You retire | Ends when you stop working. The Minimum Retirement Age Act 2012 sets 60 as the minimum retirement age for the employees it covers, and the group GHS sheet accepts employees only up to 65 next birthday | Your own medical card continues as long as you keep paying |
| Your spouse and children are on your company plan | Their cover ends with yours | In the group sheet, children are covered from 15 days old to under 19 next birthday, or to 23 if in full-time higher education |
| The company changes insurer or stops the plan | The yearly policy ends at expiry unless renewed | A new plan comes with its own terms; ask HR whether waiting periods apply again |
Before your last working day
- Ask HR in writing for the date your cover ends, for you and any dependants, and whether the policy has any continuation option.
- Submit claims for treatment already done. Great Eastern's group sheet asks for claim notification within 30 days of the event.
- Do not assume follow-up visits after your last day are covered. The same sheet excludes charges incurred after the period of insurance; ask before you book them.
- If you have no medical card of your own, apply while you are still covered and well. A personal plan has its own 30-day and 120-day waiting periods, so even a gap of a few weeks matters.
- Retrenched? Register for EIS within 60 days; my EIS guide walks through the claim.
Changing jobs: do I need to adjust my insurance?
At least check it, because the new employer's plan treats you as a new joiner, even if you had company cover the day before. These are the rules in Great Eastern's group hospital and surgical sheet:
| New joiner rule | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| 30-day waiting period | Illness is covered only from 30 days after your cover starts; injuries are covered from the start. If there is a break in coverage, the waiting period applies again |
| 120 days for specified illnesses | High blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease; tumours, cancers, cysts, nodules and polyps; urinary and gallbladder stones; ear, nose and throat conditions; hernias, haemorrhoids and fistulae; reproductive system diseases including endometriosis; spine, disc and knee conditions |
| Pre-existing illness | A condition that began before your cover started is excluded until you have been insured under that policy for 12 months |
| Pregnancy and childbirth | Excluded in the base plan unless the company adds a maternity rider |
This is where your own card earns its keep. Say you were found to have high blood pressure at your old job. Under these rules the new company's plan would not pay for it in your first 12 months, while your own card, bought before the condition began, is not touched by the job change. Claims on it still follow its own terms.
A short checklist when you change jobs
- Ask the new HR for the benefit schedule: room rate, overall annual limit, outpatient cover, and whether your spouse and children can be added.
- Ask when cover starts, on your first day or after probation, so you know how long the gap is.
- Compare it with the old plan. If the new plan is weaker, a lower deductible on your own card may make sense; if it is stronger, a higher one can cut your cost. Changing your own plan may need a new application and underwriting, so ask before you decide.
- Remember the other company covers that end with the old job, such as group term life and group personal accident.
Can I use my company medical card and my own medical card together in hospital?
Yes, for the same admission, but you cannot be paid twice. Both Great Eastern's group plan and its personal medical riders exclude treatment "to the extent which is payable by any other insurance". So one policy pays first and the other looks at what is left. Great Eastern's inpatient claim page says that once another insurer has reimbursed a claim it will not pay it again, but you can submit the uncovered amount for consideration, with "claim settlement details from third party (other insurer/employer)".
How it usually works
- At admission, bring both cards and your IC, and ask the counter which insurer it will request the guarantee letter (GL) from. Many people use the company card first. One reason: GREAT MediValue credits a Wellness Bonus of 10% of the previous year's insurance charges after each two-year period with no claim on it.
- If the company GL does not cover everything (a room above your entitlement, the annual limit used up, an excluded item), pay the balance at discharge and keep the itemised bill, the receipts and the company insurer's settlement details.
- Submit the balance to your own insurer. Great Eastern asks for original bills and receipts (photocopies are not accepted) and aims to process a complete claim within 10 to 14 working days.
- Your own card assesses the balance under its own terms, including its deductible, co-insurance and exclusions.
Where the second card matters most: a big bill that goes past the company's annual limit; a room upgrade, because in Great Eastern's group sheet staying in a room above your entitlement means you bear 20% of the other eligible benefits, with no cap; the new-joiner exclusions after a job change; and, of course, the day the company card ends. My guide to using a medical card in hospital covers the GL, the deposit and discharge step by step.
A deductible designed to sit behind your company plan
Great Eastern's SMART Health Protector brochure describes its RM20,000 deductible as the choice "if you want extra medical protection on top of your existing medical plan or employee benefits", with insurance charges 41% to 50% lower than the RM500 option. Bank Negara's MediAsas FAQ (pilot version, 29 July 2026) shows the same idea for the Fleksi plan, which has an RM10,000 deductible a year at in-network hospitals:
| Bank Negara's sample scenario (MediAsas Fleksi) | Hospital bill | Paid by the employee benefit scheme | Paid by the employee | Paid by MediAsas |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 2027: a medical procedure at an in-network hospital | RM50,000 | RM10,000 | RM0 | RM40,000 |
| May 2027: dengue, same policy year | RM20,000 | Not shown | RM0, the yearly deductible is already met | RM20,000 |
Policy wordings differ, so ask your agent to show you in writing how your own policy treats amounts your company plan pays toward the deductible. And remember the catch: a high deductible works well only while the company card is there to pay it.
Retiring: how will I pay for medical insurance after I stop working?
From your own pocket, so it is worth planning before your last payslip. The company card goes with the job, and the medical card premium keeps rising with age. Great Eastern's health plan guide also reminds readers that EPF savings are meant for broader retirement needs rather than medical expenses. This example shows why the deductible you choose while working matters on the day you retire.
Example only. Assumptions: one RM30,000 eligible hospital bill in a policy year; while employed, the company plan has an RM50,000 overall annual limit (like Plan 3 in Great Eastern's GREAT BizCare sheet) and pays the bill within its limits; no co-insurance applies on the personal card. Real results depend on the policy wording.
| Your situation (example) | You pay | Paid by insurance |
|---|---|---|
| Still employed: company card, plus your own card with an RM20,000 deductible | Only items neither plan covers | Company plan RM30,000; your own card is not touched |
| Left the job, own card still at RM20,000 deductible | RM20,000 | Own card RM10,000 |
| Retirement Option used: RM5,000 deductible from 60 next birthday | RM5,000 | Own card RM25,000 |
| Own card with an RM500 deductible | RM500 | Own card RM29,500 |
| No own card, company card ended | RM30,000 | Nothing |
Ways to keep the cost manageable
- Plan the deductible early. Great Eastern's RM20,000 deductible with Retirement Option, open to people up to 59 next birthday, converts to RM5,000 when you reach 60 next birthday without further underwriting.
- Do not count on EPF for the premium. i-Lindung lets members use EPF savings (Akaun Sejahtera before 55, Account 55 or Akaun Emas after) only for life protection and critical illness products from EPF-approved insurers, not for a medical card.
- Know the MediAsas option. Bank Negara says the base plan opens in early 2027 for people up to 70, with cover to 85 and an RM100,000 annual limit (RM150,000 above 60). The pilot terms may still change before the January 2027 launch.
- Claim the tax relief if you still pay tax. Medical insurance premiums you pay count toward the education and medical insurance relief of up to RM4,000 for YA 2025. This is general information, not tax advice.
My guide to insurance after retirement goes through which policies to keep, reduce or stop, and how an investment-linked medical card can run out of value.
Not sure how your company plan and your own card fit together? How I can help
When people WhatsApp me about this, I ask for two things: the benefit schedule of the company plan (HR or the insurer's corporate app usually has it), and the policy schedule of any medical card you already own, even one bought elsewhere. Then I put it on one page for you: what the company plan pays, where it stops, what your own card adds, and what changes on the day you resign, are retrenched or retire.
- If the company plan plus what you already have is enough for now, I will tell you so.
- If there is a gap, we look at a Great Eastern medical card with a deductible that suits your company cover, while you are still working and still well.
- If you plan to retire within a few years, we check the Retirement Option and how the premium will be paid after 60.
- If you are admitted to hospital, I can help you sort out which card to use first and the balance claim afterwards.
I look after families in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, including Seri Kembangan, Serdang, Puchong, Cheras, Ampang, Bukit Jalil and Kuchai Lama, in Mandarin, English or Cantonese. The easiest start is a free policy review. No hard selling. If you run a company and want to look at the group plan itself, my GHS guide for employers is the place to begin.
This guide is general information, not tax or legal advice. Cover always depends on your own policy wording.