John Hancock Aspire™, the First and Only Life Insurance Solution Designed for Americans Living With Diabetes

Reaching underserved clients with the next generation of personalization and engagement

There are more than 30 million Americans living with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Another 1.5 million are diagnosed every year.¹ Life with diabetes comes with unique health and lifestyle challenges and considerations. But diabetes can be managed, and people with diabetes can live full, active lives. They can and should plan for their financial futures.

Of Americans living with diabetes, half either don’t have enough life insurance or don’t have any life insurance coverage at all.² Why? They either worry they won’t qualify, or think that if they do qualify, a policy would be too expensive.³ Those are misconceptions.

Not only can people living with diabetes qualify for life insurance, there is a kind of life insurance created with their lifestyle needs in mind. John Hancock Aspire is the first and only life insurance solution designed for Americans living with type 1 or type 2 diabetes.

Aspire to a new concept: A personalized approach to life insurance and diabetes management

Over time, if left unmanaged, diabetes can lead to dangerously high blood sugar levels and serious complications, including heart disease, vision loss and kidney disease. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, taking medication as prescribed, learning diabetes self-management, accessing diabetes support and keeping health care appointments can reduce the impact of diabetes on an individual’s life and prevent or minimize long-term complications. It is possible to manage diabetes and live a long, healthy life, but even people with access to quality health care can lack the day-to-day resources needed to keep their blood glucose and HbA1c levels — key indicators of short- and long-term diabetes management — within healthy ranges.

Aspire offers clients living with diabetes the protection of life insurance paired with John Hancock Vitality, a technology-enabled program comprising tools, resources, incentives and rewards, including the potential to earn up to 25% in premium savings.⁴ Vitality is designed to help people as they make small changes to support their physical and mental well-being.

In addition, eligible Aspire members living with type 2 diabetes can access a virtual clinic offering personalized coaching, clinical support, devices and education designed to help them manage their diabetes on a daily basis.

“We have a clearer understanding of how life insurance providers can play an important part in improving individual lives and societal health outcomes,” says Brooks Tingle, president and CEO, John Hancock Insurance. “We are out to prove that life insurers can and should help clients live longer, healthier lives by providing life insurance products that emphasize living, not just planning for death.”

John Hancock helps clients aspire for peace of mind

John Hancock Vitality — rewards for healthy living

All John Hancock Aspire members have access to John Hancock Vitality. Launched in 2015, the John Hancock Vitality Program rewards customers for the things they do every day to live longer, healthier lives. There are two versions of the program to choose from, each offering a different level of benefits and rewards to match the policyholder’s personal goals and interests.

“As consumers increasingly come to expect products and solutions that cater to their individual circumstances and needs, the demand for personalization is impacting all industries,” says Tingle.

Through Vitality, clients can earn savings on premiums and valuable rewards for the small steps they take to live longer, healthier lives — like exercising, shopping for nutritious foods, getting regular checkups and practicing mindfulness. In addition to premium savings, rewards can include savings on healthy food purchases and discounts on fitness devices and at Hotels.com.

For Aspire members, there are added Vitality opportunities to demonstrate good diabetes management. Additionally, they can earn up to 25% off their premiums.⁴

Onduo — a virtual diabetes clinic

Along with using John Hancock Vitality to support their diabetes management and overall health, eligible Aspire members living with type 2 diabetes can access Onduo — a state-of-the-art diabetes clinic offering that includes:

• Blood glucose meter and test strips, delivered to the member’s door
• The Onduo app to help members manage meals, activity and other health data in one place
• Access to virtual personal coaches and certified diabetes educators, as well as doctors if needed. Onduo can coordinate with members’ doctors.
• Personal health summaries members can share with their doctors

Onduo fills the support gap that so many with type 2 diabetes experience, helping them navigate the day-to-day decisions and challenges life with diabetes can present.

“Our hope is not only that Aspire will encourage this underserved population to seek the financial protection of life insurance, but also that they will live longer, healthier lives as they engage in a program tailor-made for their unique needs,” says Tingle.

Diabetes shouldn’t stop your clients from getting the important life insurance protection they deserve

If you have a client living with diabetes, help them select the John Hancock life insurance product that best suits their needs and select Aspire on the application if they are interested in the added benefits and support designed for their lifestyle. That will start them on their way to future financial protection and a longer, healthier life where they can earn rewards for managing their diabetes.

“We’re on a journey to transform our industry. Vitality was the start. Aspire is the next step in creating innovative solutions that meet customers’ needs and are in line with their demands and expectations,” says Tingle. “While it may seem counterintuitive, I hope to see other players in the industry follow our lead to better serve clients with these kinds of solutions. Competition fuels innovation and creativity, and ultimately that will be better for our clients, our business and our industry.”

Learn more about John Hancock Aspire

For more information, visit JHAspire.com. To speak with a John Hancock Representative about how Aspire might be a good fit for your clients living with diabetes, or to get a quote, submit your information on the form to the right.

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* Source: In 2018, 88% of applicants with type 2 diabetes were approved for coverage by John Hancock; 75% of people with type 2 diabetes and other commonly related conditions were approved for coverage. 66% of people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes and other related conditions were approved for coverage.

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. National Diabetes Statistics Report, 2017. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, 2017.
2. Nationwide survey conducted online by Qualtrics on behalf of John Hancock. Interviews were completed in September 2017 among 1,025 U.S. adults ages 25 years and older living with diabetes. The data were weighted by age, income, ethnicity and region to accurately represent the U.S. population.
3. Qualtrics survey on behalf of John Hancock, completed Sept. 2017.
4. Premium savings are in comparison to the same John Hancock life insurance policy without Vitality PLUS. The level of premium savings over the life of the policy will vary based upon underwriting status, issue age, policy type, the terms of the policy and the Vitality Status achieved. Premium savings are only available with Vitality PLUS.

Additional Disclaimers

For Financial Professional Use.

The tax treatment of certain aspects of the Aspire and Vitality programs is uncertain. The value of some of the benefits you may receive in connection with these programs, such as gift cards and other cash equivalents, could be includible in your taxable income. John Hancock expects to report to the IRS only those benefits associated with these programs that it believes are taxable income, such as gift cards and other cash equivalents. Taxable benefits will be reported to the IRS by the company only if the value of such benefits received in a year is $600 or more.

The benefits available under Aspire can vary depending on whether the insured has Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, on the type and coverage amount of the life insurance policy purchased, and on the level of Onduo engagement with the John Hancock Vitality program. Eligibility for an Onduo membership is also subject to Onduo’s qualification requirements. Certain aspects of Aspire may change over time. There is no coordination between Aspire and any health benefits your clients may receive from an insurance policy, a health plan or any other wellness programs they may be enrolled in. Aspire is not available in New York, Washington, Idaho and Puerto Rico.

Vitality Rewards may vary based on the type of insurance policy purchased for the insured (Vitality Program Member) and the state where the insurance policy was issued. John Hancock Vitality Program rewards and discounts are available only to the person insured under the eligible life insurance policy. Rewards and discounts are subject to change and are not guaranteed to remain the same for the life of the policy.

Insurance policies and/or associated riders and features may not be available in all states. 

Insurance products are issued by John Hancock Life Insurance Company (U.S.A.), Boston, MA 02116 (not licensed in New York) and John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York, Valhalla, NY 10595. MLINY060820090