Definition of Major Medical Insurance

Major medical insurance is a type of health coverage that pays the costs of nearly all medical treatments, procedures, and examinations. The purpose of this type of insurance is to ensure that medical expenses incurred by a consumer are satisfied without significant out-of-pocket expense. Co-payments largely are eliminated through this type of coverage.

Benefits

• The primary benefit of major medical insurance is eliminating most out-of-pocket expenses beyond the annual deductible. A deductible is the amount a consumer pays prior to insurance coverage "kicking in."

Types

• There two most common types of major medical insurance are known as comprehensive and supplemental. Each of these major medical insurance schemes approach coverage in different ways.

Comprehensive

• Comprehensive major medical insurance combines traditional health insurance provisions with additional coverage that covers nearly any medical expense.

Supplemental

• Supplemental major medical insurance, as the name implies, is a separate policy of insurance that pays for medical expenses not covered by traditional health insurance policies. A supplemental plan acts like co-insurance for a consumer with a basic medical policy.

Time Frame

• As is the case with more traditional health care coverage, major medical insurance runs for a term of one year in most cases, and is usually renewable at the end of that time period.