John Hancock's Leading Edge Long Term Care Insurance Product Now Available in 42 States

John Hancock Life Insurance
Company's ground-breaking Leading Edge long term care insurance (LTCI)
product has been approved for sale in 42 states, including Florida and
Georgia, the company said today.

The product, introduced at the end of 2006, is now available in the
states listed in the chart below. Leading Edge, the industry's first LTCI
policy specifically designed to meet the needs and budgets of Baby Boomers,
significantly reduces the expense and complexity of buying LTCI.

"John Hancock's Leading Edge long term care insurance product is now
available to consumers across the United States to help them meet the
financial promises they have made to themselves and their loved ones," said
Laura Moore, president, John Hancock Long Term Care Insurance. "As Baby
Boomers age, they are realizing that long term care is a key part of their
retirement planning process and securing their financial future. Leading
Edge provides them with expanded coverage, reduced costs and a simplified
buying process. It enables them to secure long term care insurance
protection more easily and cost effectively than ever before."

Two Key New Features
With Leading Edge, Hancock simplified and reduced the cost of inflation
coverage, providing compound inflation protection linked to the Consumer
Price Index (CPI). Each year, the policy owner's benefit and total pool of
money increase in conjunction with the CPI.

Moore continued, "The CPI is a common measure of economic growth in the
United States, where you see pensions and social security payments linked
to the CPI. With respect to long term care, two of the primary components
of the CPI, labor and real estate, are the key drivers of increasing costs,
so the use of CPI makes much more sense than a flat percentage, which has
been the industry norm until now."

When the CPI increases, as it has done for more that 50 years straight,
the insured's benefits increase accordingly. And there is no maximum, so
during times of very high inflation as seen in the 1970s, the policy
benefits increase by the same amount, making it more likely that a policy
linked to CPI will keep pace with the cost of care. Even if the CPI goes
below zero (which hasn't happened since 1955), the benefit amount does not
decrease, rather it remains fixed at its current level until the CPI rises
again.

Another key feature of Leading Edge is the 5 Years plus $1 Million
Dollars benefit period. This new, less expensive option provides an
alternative to lifetime coverage and is designed for consumers who
anticipate needing long term care for a long time. If the pool of money
from a policyholder's 5-year benefit period runs out, an additional $1
million is added to the pool, allaying concerns about outliving financial
resources.

"Both of these innovative benefits are a result of our many years of
experience in the LTC insurance industry, and putting the needs of our
customers first," Ms. Moore said. "In addition, our proven history in this
industry along with our company's financial strength should provide a high
level of comfort to Baby Boomers or any individuals seeking long term care
insurance protection, and to producers who are offering our product to
their clients."

Ms. Moore noted several other key new features offered through Leading
Edge:

Caregiver Support Services
This feature is geared specifically to Baby Boomers who may face the
possibility of being called upon to provide care for parents and/or other
older relatives before they need care themselves.

With Caregiver Support Services, individuals have personalized
telephone and website assistance regarding caregiving questions or
concerns, access to quality reports and ratings on more than 90,000 nursing
home and assisted living facilities nationwide, and exclusive provider
discounts and care advisory services for family members. This benefit can
help the policyholders and their family members save between 7 and 35
percent on the cost of long term care provider services.

Total Homemaker and Stay At Home Services
Leading Edge offers options that help consumers stay at home for as
long as possible. First, it expands traditional home health care coverage
to include household duties, such as laundry, meal preparation, paying
bills, and having someone to watch over the policyholder to ensure
medications are taken correctly.

Second, it also covers home modifications, durable medical equipment,
caregiver training, home safety checks and medical alert systems.

There are a number of other popular options offered with Leading Edge,
such as:
* SharedCare -- enables couples to share their benefit pools
* 0-Day Elimination Period -- allows the elimination period (i.e.
deductible) to be waived for home care
* Lifestyle Benefit Changes -- provides the flexibility for policyholders
to increase or decrease their benefit amounts as needed

"Long term care insurance plays a critical role in the retirement
planning process, but we know that consumers are overwhelmed with other
priorities and sometimes put off planning for long term care," Ms. Moore
said. "We hope and expect that Leading Edge's simple structure, affordable
price and expanded home care coverage make it easier for consumers to
incorporate LTC insurance into their plans. In fact, it seems to be making
an impact already, as several of our top producers report that when they
give their clients a choice between Leading Edge and another policy, they
always choose Leading Edge."

States where John Hancock's Leading Edge LTCI product has been approved
for sale:

Alabama Alaska Arizona Colorado
Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia
Iowa Idaho Illinois Kansas
Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland
Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri
Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire
New Jersey New Mexico New York North Dakota
Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Rhode Island
South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Utah
Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia
Wisconsin Wyoming

Benefit availability and premiums may vary by state.

For more consumer information on the need for long term care and basics
of LTCI coverage, John Hancock maintains a consumer website at:
http://www.johnhancocklongtermcare.com .

About John Hancock Long Term Care Insurance
Today, John Hancock, a unit of Manulife Financial Corporation, is one
of the largest providers of LTC insurance overall with more than 969,000
clients and $1.1 billion of in-force premium.
Having entered the retail LTC insurance market in 1987, John Hancock is
the second-largest provider of individual coverage in the country. John
Hancock began selling group LTC insurance in 1988 and today is the largest
provider of employer-sponsored LTC insurance in the U.S.
In 2002, John Hancock and MetLife together were selected to administer
an LTC insurance program for federal employees, retirees and various family
members across the country. The program is the largest single employer-
sponsored LTC insurance program of its kind.
About John Hancock and Manulife Financial
John Hancock is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Manulife Financial
Corporation, a leading Canadian-based financial services group serving
millions of customers in 19 countries and territories worldwide. Operating
as Manulife Financial in Canada and Asia, and primarily through John
Hancock in the United States, the Company offers clients a diverse range of
financial protection products and wealth management services through its
extensive network of employees, agents and distribution partners. Funds
under management by Manulife Financial and its subsidiaries were Cdn$414
billion (US$355 billion) as at December 31, 2006.
Manulife Financial Corporation trades as 'MFC' on the TSX, NYSE and
PSE, and under '0945' on the SEHK. Manulife Financial can be found on the
Internet at http://www.manulife.com .
The John Hancock unit, through its insurance companies, comprises one
of the largest life insurers in the United States. John Hancock offers a
broad range of financial products and services, including life insurance,
fixed and variable annuities, mutual funds, 401(k) plans, long-term care
insurance, college savings and other forms of business insurance.
Benefit selection may vary by state. Long Term Care Insurance is
underwritten by John Hancock Life Insurance Company, Boston, MA 02117