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LIMRA Launches 2026 Lifetime Income Initiative

Author

Tina Beckwith, MBA
Chief Marketing Officer
LIMRA and LOMA

March 2026

As 2026 begins, LIMRA is doubling down on its commitment to expand awareness and education around protected lifetime income — and annuities as a cornerstone of retirement security. Our focus is clear: help more Americans retire confidently by equipping financial professionals and Americans with the support they need to guide retirement planning toward sustainable, protected income strategies such as annuities.

By uniting the industry under a shared vision, we aim to elevate how retirement income planning is understood, delivered and experienced — both by the professionals who advise clients and the consumers making critical financial decisions.

Why This Matters

Approximately 65 million Gen Xers are now approaching retirement, and they are widely considered the least prepared generation for this critical life stage. Unlike Baby Boomers, Gen X faces retirement with fewer guarantees: diminished pension coverage, heightened market volatility, rising healthcare costs, and longer life expectancies. Many are also juggling competing priorities such as caring for aging parents, supporting adult children, and navigating economic uncertainty later in their careers.

Despite these realities, retirement planning often remains delayed or overly focused on accumulation rather than income. The need for education, clarity and consultative guidance has never been greater. LIMRA, alongside carriers, independent marketing organizations (IMOs), brokerage general agencies (BGAs), asset managers, wirehouses, and independent broker-dealers, is working to close this gap and help Gen X move from uncertainty to informed action and ultimately retirement security.

2026 Key Pillars

To respond to these challenges, we have identified four foundational pillars for 2026 that will focus and accelerate the industry’s collective efforts to support Gen X on the path to retirement security.

Consumer Education: At the heart of the initiative is Own Your NeXt, our integrated consumer education campaign, which can be found on our consumer website. It is designed to build trust and spark action among Gen Xers. Own Your NeXt emphasizes the urgency of beginning retirement planning now while empowering consumers to take ownership of what comes next in their financial lives.

The campaign reframes retirement planning from a source of anxiety to one of opportunity — highlighting how professional advice and protected income solutions can help create stability, flexibility and confidence. Through relatable storytelling, research-backed insights, and accessible educational content, Own Your NeXt speaks directly to the unique challenges Gen X faces today.

A key component of this effort is our podcast partnership with Jean Chatzky of HerMoney Media, the first episode launched on Jan. 21 with Christine Benz of Morningstar. The podcast will serve as a catalyst for broader, ongoing consumer conversations throughout the year.

Own Your NeXt isn’t about a product. It’s about possibility — and giving more Americans the clarity and confidence to claim their financial future.

Financial Professional Resources: Complementing this work, we are expanding resources for financial professionals to help strengthen retirement income conversations.

Research continues to show a meaningful disconnect between what financial professionals believe consumers understand about annuities and what consumers report themselves. According to our Protected Retirement Income and Planning study, 28% of financial professionals believe their clients understand annuities “very well,” while only 14% of consumers share that view.

LIMRA will take this conversation on the road and conduct a national roadshow, engaging financial professionals directly — sharing findings and insights, facilitating open dialogue, and addressing the real-world challenges that limit effective retirement income conversations.

This effort will include the Retirement Lab Symposium in fall 2026, bringing together financial professionals to exchange insights, test new ideas, and help define best practices.

Industry Symposium: As part of these broader efforts, top decision makers shaping strategy and consumer outcomes across the retirement ecosystem will convene at The Best Minds Retirement Symposium, June 15 – 16 in Boston, Mass. This invitation-only event will provide a forum for leaders to share insights and drive innovation. Culminating in a C‑Suite Town Hall, the event is designed to produce actionable dialogue and collaborative progress.

New Insights: In parallel with these high‑level industry discussions, LIMRA is generating new insights to guide solutions grounded in evidence and real‑world consumer experience.

Guided by 15 Fellows representing LIMRA’s Retirement Income Institute, we will dig deeper into the barriers that prevent Gen X from prioritizing retirement planning and protected income solutions such as annuities. We will also address key risks, including market volatility, cognitive decline, and unforeseen health or long-term care expenses.

The Retirement Income Institute complements our long-standing annuity research capabilities that will continue to examine critical gaps and opportunities in the annuity market. These insights will be woven into consumer education and financial professional resources. 

Industry-Powered Campaign

Carriers, asset managers, distributors and fellow trade organizations are working together to support broader retirement education and innovative solutions. LIMRA is committed to amplifying our collective work, supporting financial professionals’ efforts, and advancing annuities as a foundational pillar of retirement security.

To kick off the year, we have released a short video (please see below), designed to energize the market and showcase the shared progress being made.

Together, the industry has an opportunity — and a responsibility — to shape a more financially secure generation of retirees.

 

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