According to the definition provided by the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) on its website, long-term care insurance provides financial coverage to a person who can no longer care for themselves, for example, in the event of illness or accident. “The insurance may pay an annuity to cover, for instance, long-term stays in specialized care centres or in-home care,” it states.
How many insurers offer an individual long-term care insurance policy in Canada today? Only one. An alternative exists, but it requires purchasing a critical illness or disability insurance product to potentially benefit from it.
How many did the industry offer ten years ago? Six. By withdrawing from this market in 2017, the reinsurer Munich Re triggered the withdrawal of insurers such as Desjardins Insurance and Manulife Canada that same year. Only Sun Life remained when its last competitor, Blue Cross Canassurance, withdrew its Tangible product in 2021. To explain its withdrawal, Munich Re cited weak industry sales.
However, long-term care policyholders remain protected by their policies as long as they do not cancel them. The risk therefore remains on the shelves of the insurers who underwrote them. For example, Manulife recently reached an agreement with a reinsurer to underwrite the risk of the long-term care products it sold.
A growing target market
The target customer base is nevertheless expected to grow. By 2050, 27% of the population in advanced markets will be over 65, reported the Insurance Portal on October 22, 2025. At the heart of the article was a study by the Swiss Re Institute. This study highlights the limited insurance solutions available for aging clients.
The proportion of people aged 65 and over is projected to grow in Canada by 2050, according to projections made by the Insurance Portal using data from Statistics Canada's Table 17-10-0057-01 Projected population, by projection scenario, age and gender, as of July 1 (x 1,000).
The analysis reveals that 11.5 million Canadians will have reached the age of 65 by 2050, representing 23.6% of a total population of 48.7 million, based on a medium-growth projection scenario. According to the same scenario, 8.1 million Canadians were 65 years of age or older in 2025, out of a total population of 41.7 million, representing 19.4%. People who turned 65 in 2024 could then expect to live another 21.15 years on average, according to Statistics Canada.
The 2024 estimate is the most recent available from its Table 13-10-0837-01, Life expectancy and other elements of the complete life table, single-year estimates, Canada, all provinces except Prince Edward Island, released on January 13, 2026. The life expectancy of women who reached age 65 in 2024 was the highest of the two sexes, at 22.45 years. On average, they could therefore live to be 87. The life expectancy of men of this age in 2024 was shorter, at 19.75 years. They could therefore expect to live beyond 84 years.
Redefining relevance
We are seeing a generation that is larger, living longer, and arriving at retirement wealthier.
– Paul Murray, Swiss Re
The insurance industry has an opportunity to redefine its relevance to people over 65, says the Swiss Re Institute study entitled Life (span) insurance: Accumulation, decumulation and longevity solutions.
Its authors urged the industry to design products capable of pooling longevity risk by covering mortality, longevity, and health risks simultaneously.
In a summary of this study published on the Swiss Re Institute website, Paul Murray, CEO Swiss Re Life & Health Reinsurance, said that the impact of the silver economy on insurers will only intensify. “We are seeing a generation that is larger, living longer, and arriving at retirement wealthier than we have seen before,” he noted.
Limited supply
Yet, the supply of guaranteed long-term care financing remains limited in Canada. Guaranteed income solutions offered by the industry are few and far between, and sometimes restricted to a small segment of the population.
Since then, almost all insurers have withdrawn their offerings. Some have even entered into agreements with a reinsurer to cover the risk of products already underwritten, which will remain in effect until benefits are paid or the policy expires.
Only one insurer still offers this product as a standalone policy: Sun Life, which offers its Sun Retirement Health Assist product, notably through its network of agents dedicated to the company. Applicants can purchase this product starting at age 45, according to the comparative table prepared for the Insurance Portal by InsuranceINTEL, the insurance product information centre of the Insurance Journal Publishing Group.
RBC Insurance offers an alternative, but it is only available to policyholders who have purchased Critical Illness Insurance (Critical Illness Recovery Plan) or the Bridge Series, Quantum, Professional Series and Foundation Series disability insurance. According to information available in the InsuranceINTEL database, this alternative is called the Long Term Care Conversion Option.
Also according to InsuranceINTEL, RBC Insurance allows policyholders to convert one of these policies into long-term care insurance from age 55 to 65, without any proof of insurability. RBC Insurance stopped offering its independent long-term care insurance policy in 2012.
RBC Insurance responded by email to a question from the Insurance Portal regarding the conversion rate of this feature. “Approximately 6% of eligible policyholders have converted from a Critical Illness policy to a Long-Term Care policy since the implementation of this option, and less than 5% for Disability Insurance policyholders,” they stated.
In 2011, Insurance Portal revealed the results of a LIMRA survey showing that the long-term care insurance market segment represented $83 million in premiums in Canada in 2009. This was a 6% increase over 2008. There were 70,500 insured individuals in 2009, a 5% increase over 2008.
No plans to re-enter the market
We do not have an intention to enter the long-term care insurance market.
– Naveed Irshad, Manulife
Since exiting the long-term care insurance market in 2017, Manulife Canada has consistently affirmed its commitment to supporting initiatives that promote longevity for Canadians, always with a focus on prevention. On April 8, the insurer announced the Douglas Mental Health University Institute a $1 million, four-year grant to support the Douglas Cognitive Health and Prevention Clinic, powered by Manulife.
In its press release, Manulife states that the clinic is Quebec's first precision medicine dementia prevention clinic. Its goal is to identify individual risk factors and tailor care accordingly. It helps adults aged 40 and over in their prevention efforts, notably through evidence-based prevention plans that target the factors most associated with cognitive decline.
Manulife Canada’s President and CEO, Naveed Irshad, answered Insurance Journal’s questions regarding the LTC market by email. The main one: Should the long-term care insurance market be revived, and if so, how? “We do not have an intention to enter the long-term care insurance market,” Irshad replied.
He says he prefers to focus on prevention. “We do see a clear and growing need for solutions that help people stay healthier longer, preserve savings, and manage financial and health related pressures as they age,” Irshad stated.
He added that Manulife already meets these needs through life insurance, critical illness insurance, annuities and segregated funds, as well as its wealth and retirement management solutions, and the cash surrender value of life insurance policies. He also mentioned the rewards of healthy lifestyle habits. “Programs like Manulife Vitality actively encourage healthier choices that can improve quality of life today while reducing risk over time," he stated.
Regarding the decision to invest in the Douglas clinic, Irshad said that "When people are able to manage risk earlier, outcomes improve — and pressure on families, employers, governments, and insurers declines." He pointd out that studies suggest that up to 40% of dementia cases may be prevented by addressing individual risk factors earlier in life.
