10/30/2026
Americans are living longer. Are they getting more prepared for it? According to a new study, not at all.
The second-annual Longevity Preparedness Index, created by John Hancock and MIT's AgeLab, scored Americans at 60 out of 100. That is exactly where they were last year. No improvement.
And the lowest score of all was not savings. It was care. Community came in at 71 and social connection at 69. Health and home both scored 56. Overall care scored just 43.
Here is the number that jumped out at me. People who work with a financial professional scored 67. People who do not scored 58. That is a meaningful gap, and John Hancock's Wayne Park says it shows up across wellbeing, not just finances.
MIT AgeLab's Dr. Joe Coughlin says planning can no longer focus only on retirement savings. People need to ask where they will live, who they will live with, and who will care for them.
I could not agree more. I have been teaching for 35 years that longevity is the risk multiplier. It makes every other retirement risk bigger: inflation, health costs, market losses, long-term care. You cannot plan for a 30-year retirement the way you plan for a 15-year one.
Money is the foundation, but it is only the foundation. Start with guaranteed lifetime income to cover your basic living expenses, the first step in Paychecks and Playchecks. Then plan for care, because leaving it to chance often means leaving it to your family. That is why I own unlimited long-term care coverage.
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