Announces longevity preparedness research;
builds on insurer's commitment to help people live longer,
healthier, better lives
BOSTON, May 14, 2024
/PRNewswire/ - John Hancock, along
with its Toronto-based parent
company Manulife (NYSE: MFC), today announced a five-year,
multimillion-dollar research collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) AgeLab, a multi-disciplinary research
institute that works with business, government, and NGOs, leading
innovation and research to help improve the quality of life for the
aging population and their loved ones. Over the next five years,
Manulife/John Hancock and the MIT
AgeLab will collaborate to research the future of longevity
innovation, developing research, thought leadership, and workshops
with the goal of driving actionable insights for the business
community, policymakers, and individuals and their families.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) reports that by 2050, the number
of people aged over 60 is expected to double to 2.1 billion. Yet,
one-fifth of an individual's life, on average, is now expected to
be lived with morbidity or in a state of illness. Lifespans
and healthspans are not evenly distributed at the national or
global level: a significant outcome of socioeconomic and
environmental disparities. As such gaps expand, so does the need
for immediate action to address what is already a major longevity
crisis in our communities and the world at large. As the aging
population grows, better understanding the intersection of health
and wealth, including preventative health measures and retirement
planning, will be paramount.
"The fastest-growing age cohort in the world is people over 85.
As we continue to see people live longer lives, it is crucial that
we gain new insight into how we can make longer lives synonymous
with better and healthier lives," said
Brooks Tingle, president and CEO,
John Hancock. "We
fundamentally believe in helping make this a reality and know that
this ambition does not start and end within the walls of our
business. That's why we're committed to collaborating with leaders
in the space, like the MIT AgeLab, to help provide others—from
policymakers to industry leaders to healthcare advocates—with
critical learnings that can scale our shared mission to drive
better health and wealth outcomes."
This research will explore the critical tenets of longevity in
the United States and hopes to
develop a first-of-its-kind longevity preparedness index, to be
produced annually over an initial five-year period. As lifespans
continue to increase worldwide, the index will measure the
readiness of Americans from every generation to live a longer,
healthier, and better life; and provide data-driven insights for
maximizing financial planning, health and wellness habits, work and
retirement transition planning, housing choices, end-of-life
planning, and technological advances that support critical health
and financial needs at each step of the aging process. Research on
the first annual index will begin in the spring of 2024. The index
is expected to expand to include Canada as the collaboration evolves.
MIT AgeLab founder and director Dr. Joseph Coughlin will lead this work with a team
of social and data scientists along with experts outside of
MIT. In addition to the index, the
group will host several workshops throughout the year to engage in
discussions and activations around longevity, generational
dynamics, new technology, and behavioral insurance.
Manulife/John Hancock has also
joined the MIT AgeLab PLAN, an industry consortium examining how
the business of advice might better prepare people to live 100 good
years.
"My research team is excited to embark on this research
collaboration with Manulife/John
Hancock," said MIT AgeLab's Coughlin. "The spirit of
MIT is to think and do. We want not
only to identify the many different dimensions of what it takes to
live longer, better; but also to measure the preparedness of a
nation to live 100 good years. It is our shared objective that our
work will educate and motivate people to do what it takes for
themselves, their families, and their communities—to turn a longer
life into a better life for all."
The MIT AgeLab, based within MIT's
Center for Transportation & Logistics, is known internationally
for its multi-disciplinary work exploring avenues of pragmatic,
actionable innovation desired by, and useful to, aging consumers
and workers, as well as their loved ones. This ongoing project
spans sectors including automotive, healthcare, caregiving, housing
and community design, and financial services; and inspired
Coughlin's bestselling 2017 book, The Longevity
Economy.
This announcement supports Manulife's Impact Agenda, which seeks
to empower sustained health and well-being, and builds on
John Hancock's inaugural Longer.
Healthier. Better. Symposium hosted
in Boston in September of 2023, where global leaders
across public and private sectors convened to share the latest
research and innovations driving the future of longevity. Globally,
Manulife was proud to support WEF's recently announced Longevity
Economy Principles, which offer a strategic approach to
addressing the global longevity crisis. Manulife also recently
announced a multi-year partnership with UpLink, WEF's open
innovation platform, designed to help shape the future of, and
investment in, longevity innovation.
Learn more about Manulife, John
Hancock, and the MIT AgeLab.
About John
Hancock and Manulife
John Hancock is a unit of
Manulife Financial Corporation, a leading international financial
services provider that helps people make their decisions easier and
lives better by providing financial advice, insurance, and wealth
and asset management solutions. Manulife Financial Corporation
trades as MFC on the TSX, NYSE, and PSE, and under 945 on the SEHK.
Manulife can be found at manulife.com. One of the largest life
insurers in the United States,
John Hancock supports more than ten
million Americans with a broad range of financial products,
including life insurance and annuities. John Hancock also supports US investors by
bringing leading investment capabilities and retirement planning
and administration expertise to individuals and institutions.
Additional information about John
Hancock may be found at johnhancock.com.
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