Toronto-based Manulife Financial Corp. has partnered with Olathe, Kan.-based Garmin International Inc. to provide the wearable fitness-tracking devices that will be used in the insurance firm’s new “Vitality” program.
The initiative is meant to reward individuals with select new life insurance policies for healthy living and is slated to launch later this year. Manulife will provide Vitality program members with a free Garmin “vívofit 3” wearable activity device that will track physical activities that can include running, biking and swimming, according to an announcement released Thursday.
Those physical activities — in addition to other health-related activities, such as receiving a flu shot or a undergoing a health screening — will help the program member earn points over the course of a year. Those points will determine their status in the program, which, in turn, can lead to rewards and benefits for the member.
Manulife announced in February that it would partner with Chicago-based Vitality Group Inc., a wellness program provider, to make the program available in Canada. The Canadian firm’s U.S. subsidiary, Boston-based John Hancock Life Insurance Co., had launched a similar initiative for the U.S. market in April 2015.
“Vitality research shows that wearable technology is effective when paired with the right incentives,” says Alan Pollard, CEO of the Vitality Group, in a statement. “Combining the features of a free Garmin device with Vitality incentives is a strong motivator to help people get active and improve their health.”
Manulife’s program is currently targeted to those with individual life insurance policies, but the firm states in its announcement that it is investigating opportunities to make the program available through other products.
Manulife program focused on rewarding healthy living
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