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Salesforce (CRM) delivered yet another record quarterly report as the cloud-based software giant's products continue to benefit from more companies embracing the all-digital, work-from-anywhere world.

"Our products are just more relevant than they've ever been. I think every CEO is realizing that this pandemic is not going away we're in a new pandemic world, an all-digital, work-from-anywhere world. And companies are investing in their digital infrastructure so that they can set themselves up to grow in this new world," Salesforce president and COO Bret Taylor told Yahoo Finance Live on Thursday.

On Wednesday, Salesforce reported better-than-expected second-quarter results, with quarterly revenue crossing $6 billion for the first time. For the second quarter, Salesforce posted $6.34 billion in revenue, up 23% year-over-year. The cloud giant delivered adjusted earnings per share of $1.48, well ahead of estimates of 92 cents per share.

Salesforce also raised its guidance for fiscal 2022 to a range of $26.2 to $26.3 billion, up $300 million from the prior guide, and representing approximately 23% to 24% year-over-year growth. The company expects to reach $50 billion in annual revenue by fiscal 2026.

Salesforce's Sales, Service, Marketing & Commerce, Platform, Tableau, MuleSoft, and Slack are all billion-dollar-plus products, or what CEO Marc Benioff has dubbed, "a herd of unicorns." In July, Salesforce closed on its $27.7 billion record acquisition of messaging app Slack Technologies, which will play a critical role in its bet on a digital work-from-anywhere future.

The Slack app icon is displayed on a computer screen, Wednesday, Dec 2, 2020, in Tokyo. In a deal announced Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020, business software pioneer Salesforce.com is buying work-chatting service Slack for $27.7 billion in a deal aimed at giving the two companies a better shot at competing against longtime industry powerhouse Microsoft. (AP Photo/Kiichiro Sato)

As the debate about the future of work continues across corporate America, Taylor contends that with the Delta COVID-19 variant, more CEOs are realizing, "This isn't just going to snap back." As such, boards and leadership teams are "realizing that investing in your digital employee experience, your digital partner experience, and your digital customer experience is paramount if you want to go grow in this new normal," Taylor added.

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In this new normal, tools like Slack "represent a vision for a new way to work" that is more asynchronous and provides more flexibility for employees. Taylor added that Slack also offers new tools and workflows, allowing a sales team, for example, to close a quarter "better and faster."

Julia La Roche is a Correspondent at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter.

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Salesforce president on record Q2: 'Our products are just more relevant than they've ever been' - Yahoo Finance

A new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) bolsters the argument that unvaccinated individuals are at a much higher risk of experiencing the worst outcomes of COVID-19 than vaccinated individuals.

These data indicate that authorized vaccines protect against SARS-CoV-2 infection and severe COVID-19, even with increased community transmission of the newly predominant Delta variant, the CDC report stated.

Between May 1 and July 25, 2021, unvaccinated residents of Los Angeles County, California, were 29.2 times more likely to be hospitalized by COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, than their fully vaccinated counterparts. Those unvaccinated individuals also accounted for 71.4% of all infections during that time.

Unvaccinated LA residents studied were more than 29 times more likely to be hospitalized for COVID than fully vaccinated individuals. (Chart: CDC)

About 51.6% of the American population is fully vaccinated. In California, about 55.1% of the population is fully vaccinated while 67.9% have received at least one dose.

This really is a medical miracle that we were able to take the information that weve had over the past two decades and have all of our agencies working together to get us a vaccine in record time, Dr. Adam Brown, Envision Healthcares COVID-19 national task force chair, said on Yahoo Finance Live recently. But whats important for folks to recognize is that the safety procedures, the clinical trials, the number of people who were tested with the vaccine, have been followed just like they have been with other types of medications.

Vaccination has slowed despite scientific data showing that the vaccines make a significant difference in preventing serious illness and death. Unvaccinated individuals cited reasons including distrust of the FDA, concerns over side effects (stemming from misinformation), or personal liberties.

The FDA initially granted Pfizer (PFE), along with Moderna (MRNA) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), emergency use authorizations for their COVID-19 vaccines, meaning that they would allow the use "in an emergency to diagnose, treat, or prevent serious or life-threatening diseases or conditions when certain statutory criteria have been met, including that there are no adequate, approved, and available alternatives."

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The FDA granted full approval to the Pfizer vaccine on Monday, and the new CDC study further corroborates the idea that the vaccines work.

I understand theres a lot of fear out there, Brown said. Theres a lot of information coming at people from multiple different sources about the vaccine, about the virus, about masks. The fact is that these vaccines are safe. And when you look at our hospitals, you look at the people who are sadly dying from COVID-19, they are primarily with a high percentage those who are unvaccinated.

A woman holds an American flag and prays "in tongues," or in an unknown language, according to the Pentecostal Christian belief, as anti-vaccination protesters gather near City Hall in Los Angeles, on Aug. 14, 2021. (Photo by DAVID MCNEW/AFP)

The Pfizer vaccine is the only shot available for children under age 18, though those under the age of 12 still can't get it. That leaves millions of children still vulnerable to the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus, and data has shown more children are being hospitalized now than at any other point during the pandemic.

The CDC study found that the unvaccinated individuals in LA County represented 85% of deaths, 86.9% of those admitted to intensive care units, and 87.3% of those who required mechanical ventilation to assist with their breathing.

The report also detailed the rise of the Delta variant. In May, the Alpha variant accounted for 55% of cases among the unvaccinated in Los Angeles County. By July, the Delta variant accounted for an overwhelming number of cases among the unvaccinated, partially vaccinated, and even fully vaccinated residents.

The Delta variant now accounts for a majority of COVID cases. (Chart: CDC)

Adriana Belmonte is a reporter and editor covering politics and health care policy for Yahoo Finance. You can follow her on Twitter @adrianambells and reach her at adriana@yahoofinance.com.

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Unvaccinated LA residents were 29 times more likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19: CDC study - Yahoo Finance

Delta Air Lines broke new ground recently by requiring unvaccinated employees to pay an extra $200 per month for company-provided health insurance. That may be a bargain for workers refusing to get vaccinated against Covid-19.

The average cost of hospitalization for Covid-19 is around $20,000, according to recently published data from the Kaiser Family Foundation. At $200 per month, it would take 100 months of added premiums, or more than 8 years worth, to cover the cost of a Covid hospital visit. That doesnt cover lost worker productivity, testing and other disruptions, which is probably why Deltas chief health officer said recently that the $200 monthly surcharge wouldnt come close to fully covering the added costs related to unvaccinated workers.

[Read more: Vaccine mandates: Here are the companies requiring proof of inoculation from employees]

Delta (DAL) said the extra payments are meant to impose some accountability on unvaccinated workers who are raising costs and risks for everybody. Other companies could follow suit. The Food and Drug Administrations full approval of the Pfizer Covid vaccine on Aug. 23 removes legal barriers some companies felt prevented them from requiring workers to get vaccinated, or treating unvaccinated workers differently from those who have gotten their shots. More companies are now requiring workers to get jabbed, and theres some evidence more Americans will now be willing to get their shots.

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But with about 26% of adult Americans still unvaccinated, companies are likely to be grappling with the ramifications of unprotected workers for months or years. Every unvaccinated person wont get Covid, and every person who gets Covid wont end up hospitalized. So every unvaccinated worker doesnt represent a $20,000 risk. But unvaccinated workers clearly represent some higher cost of care. An obvious question for employers is whether that higher cost should be pooled among all workers, or borne directly by those choosing not to get vaccinated.

Deltas $200 per month insurance surcharge appears to be a compromise. Delta is choosing not to require current workers to get vaccinated as a condition of employment, as rival United (UAL) and many other companies are, for reasons the company hasnt explained. It may have something to do with political opposition to vaccine mandates in Deltas home state of Georgia. There are also questions as to whether charging some employees more for insurance complies with the Affordable Care Act, which prohibits higher insurance premiums for people with pre-existing conditions, except for narrow exceptions, such as smoking. So Delta could face a legal challenge.

Whats much more clear is the mounting health and financial toll associated with the unvaccinated. Kaiser estimates 113,000 unvaccinated Americans who were hospitalized with Covid-19 in June and July would have stayed out of the hospital had they gotten vaccinated. At an average cost of $20,000 per hospitalization, those unvaccinated Covid victims required about $2.3 billion in unnecessary health care spending, in just two months.

Most people dont pay the full cost of a visit, since they have government or private-sector insurance. But the plans pay, and if higher costs for one type of illness raise overall costs, then the cost of insurance for everybody will go up. People without insurance do face the entire cost of a hospital visit, though sometimes hospitals negotiate the cost down or end up writing it off for people who cant pay.

The cost of going unvaccinated is rising in a variety of ways. Some unvaxxed workers have lost their jobs because they refuse to abide by employer vaccine requirements, which courts have ruled legal. With full FDA approval of the Pfizer vaccine, many employers may decide they are legally obligated to require vaccines, to protect workers and customers. The unvaccinated also face a kind of outsider status as more states, cities and private organizations require proof of vaccination to eat at a restaurant or attend events like concerts and professional sports.

A patient receives her booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine during an Oakland County Health Department vaccination clinic at the Southfield Pavilion on August 24, 2021 in Southfield, Michigan. Oakland County is the second county in Michigan to reach the state's goal of vaccinating 70% of its population. (Photo by Emily Elconin/Getty Images)

Theres also the obvious risk of dying. Health officials now say nearly every Covid death in the United States is preventable, since vaccines are widely available, for free, and they largely forestall death and serious illness. More than 31,000 Americans have died of Covid since the beginning of June, an astounding measure of needless loss. Many of those victims were workers lost to their companies forever and providers who no longer provide. The cost of dying is plainly higher than the cost of going unvaccinated, and at this point most Americans have the ability to avert both.

Rick Newman is the author of four books, including "Rebounders: How Winners Pivot from Setback to Success. Follow him on Twitter: @rickjnewman. You can also send confidential tips, and click here to get Ricks stories by email.

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New weekly jobless claims hovered near their lowest level since March 2020, underscoring the sustained improvement in the labor market despite ongoing concerns over the Delta variant and worker shortages.

The Labor Department released its weekly jobless claims report on Thursday at 8:30 a.m. ET. Here were the main metrics from the print, compared to consensus estimates compiled by Bloomberg:

Initial unemployment claims, week ended August 21: 353,000vs. 350,000 expected and a revised 349,000 during the prior week

Continuing claims, week ended August 14: 2.862 million vs. 2.772 million expected and 2.820 million during the prior week

At 353,000, the level of new jobless claims was up slightly from the previous week, marking the first increase in initial claims in five weeks. Still, weekly claims have more than halved compared to their weekly pace in August 2020, and have trended lower since the start of 2021. And the four-week moving average for new jobless claims came down by another 11,500 to reach 366,500, marking the lowest level since March 2020.

The U.S. economy, however, has yet to return to the weekly filing levels of the period before the pandemic. New claims were coming in at a weekly rate of just over 200,000 throughout 2019.

And the total number of individuals claiming benefits across all state and federal programs remains elevated relative to pre-virus sums. As of the week ended August 7, about 12 million Americans were claiming benefits of all forms, marking an increase of 182,000 versus the previous period.

This total, while bumpy, has largely come down as more vaccinations took place and more than two dozen states phased out federal enhanced unemployment benefits, with the hope of incentivizing workers to rejoin the labor market. At the national level, all states are set to phase out pandemic-era federal augmented unemployment benefits as of Sept. 6.

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Many economists are looking for the broader expiration of these unemployment benefits and the start of the school year to provide a further boost to the labor market in the coming weeks and months.

"Fundamentally, if we look at the production side of the economy, labor's going to come more back to the market after Labor Day when kids are back in school, where more folks are vaccinated, when those unemployment benefits run out," JoAnne Feeney, partner and portfolio manager at Advisors Capital Management, told Yahoo Finance. "We have a lot of good fundamentals in place for continued economic growth."

Others highlighted that the increase in COVID-19 cases does pose a risk to the pace of the economic recovery, but that the labor market should ultimately still see a strong pick-up even against this backdrop.

"Not to sound too sanguine we do see the rise in the Delta cases, that is a downside risk to the economy but we do think that each of these surges has had less of an impact on the economy, partly because the appetite for adding restrictions from the administration seems to be lower," Priya Misra, TD Securities managing director, told Yahoo Finance. "We do see a slowing in the economic outlook, or GDP, but remaining very robust, and the labor market really accelerating. GDP has outpaced the labor market, and now it's time for the labor market to catch up."

Emily McCormick is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter: @emily_mcck

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Jobless claims: Another 353,000 individuals filed new claims last week - Yahoo Finance

New confirmed cases of COVID-19 and resulting hospitalizations are skyrocketing in Florida, and the mayor of Fort Lauderdale would like Governor Ron DeSantis to rethink some of the policies contributing to elevated transmission.

If theres an ultimate political agenda trying to appeal to some sort of outlier group thinking thats going to advance a person politically, I just think theyre misjudging what people really want, Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis said on Yahoo Finance Live (video above). And I think that its ok to step back. Its OK to say all right, maybe we should change course.

DeSantis, a staunch Republican who is eyeing a 2024 election bid, enacted policies banning masks in schools and downplayed the latest Delta variant-driven surge while newly confirmed cases, hospitalizations, and deaths rose to new pandemic highs in the state.

No one is going to blame anybody for doing the wrong thing because look, in government, we dont always make the right choices, said Trantalis, a Democrat. But we do know that if we do make a wrong choice, we need to live by it and we need to accept the wrong choice and try to do the right thing. Id ask the governor to rethink his agenda and try to work with all of the local communities in trying to keep people safe here.

Hospitals in Florida are running out of ICU beds as they're being inundated with COVID patients, most of them unvaccinated. (Floridas overall vaccination rate is 51.6%, which is on par with the nations average of 51.5%.) The city of Orlando is now asking its residents to restrict their water use in order to make sure there's enough to use as liquid oxygen for COVID patients.

"Our hospitals are experiencing the highest number of unvaccinated, critically ill patients at this point as any other point during the pandemic," Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer said at a press conference on Friday. "Many of these patients require liquid oxygen."

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Over the last 18 months, Florida has seen 3,040,590 total cases and 42,252 deaths from COVID-19, the disease caused by coronavirus. The Sunshine State also ranks fifth overall in terms of the number of cases per 100,000 people at 14,157.

Keep in mind that its not just older people that are getting this disease, Trantalis said. We just had a recent death in our own police department, a 27-year-old young woman with a newborn child, a new husband, and tomorrow is her funeral. 27 years old, not vaccinated.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks at a press conference to announce the opening of a monoclonal antibody treatment site for COVID-19 patients at Lakes Church in Lakeland, Florida, on August 21, 2021. (Photo by Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Conservatives have praised Gov. DeSantis throughout the pandemic for keeping the states economy going, while health officials have criticized his moves as dangerous to public health.

According to Trantalis, you would have to ask DeSantis what his ultimate goal is with his attitude towards the pandemic.

All I know is that as I listen to the folks around the country, those in the medical community, theyre insisting that masks are important to prevent the spread of the disease and that vaccinations are clearly the best choice in terms of whether or not this disease is going to ever achieve the herd immunity that were hoping to achieve, Trantalis said.

DeSantis has come out strongly against mask mandates, going as far as threatening to withhold funding from schools that mandate students to wear masks.

School-age children are proving to be more vulnerable to the Delta variant, which has become the dominant strain of coronavirus circulating in America. Cases in children have risen substantially since the beginning of July and now account for 18% of newly confirmed weekly cases, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), indicating an increased going into the new school year.

The reality is we have a public to protect, Trantalis said. Governments sole purpose is to protect its citizens. If we fail in that, then we fail in our responsibility. The school board made the right decision. The school board is now being assisted by the federal government in any way that it can to draw up any of the resources that might be denied as a result of the state trying to take some sort of action against it.

Broward County recently approved a mask mandate for schools and is now facing threats from the Florida Education Commissioner, who has warned that board members could start losing their salaries if they refuse to include an opt-out clause for parents in any county-level masking policy.

We cannot tolerate this as a community, as a society, knowing that theres a possible cure out there and then to ignore it, Trantalis said. Its just playing Russian Roulette with our society.

In addition to encouraging mask wearing, Trantalis is also working towards getting more of his constituents vaccinated.

In Broward County, in particular, just over 50% of the people are actually vaccinated fully, Trantalis said. So whats the message we have to make? What do we have to say to convince people that vaccination is the way out of this pandemic? Were looking for ways.

The foundation of his efforts centers around one key course of action: Following the science.

Weve talked about that since day one, Trantalis said. Last year in March, we closed our beaches for spring break because that was the science back then: Avoid close contact, try to get people out of cramped quarters in these hotel rooms where all these kids were visiting our state.

Since then, he said, theyve learned that there are more efficient courses of action. Beaches and hotels have since reopened, but Fort Lauderdale is strongly encouraging vaccinations.

We have free vaccination sites all over the city, Trantalis said. We even started pop-up sites in places that we find that the vaccination rate is least utilized for example, in many of our churches, especially some of our fundamentalist folks who seem to have an aversion to this vaccine. Were going to their pastors and setting pop-up vaccination sites at their churches.

A man talks with a health worker as he waits to be inoculated against COVID-19 during a vaccination event at FTX Arena in Miami, August 5, 2021. REUTERS/Marco Bello

The city is specifically reaching out to the homeless and Black communities. (Black Americans are less likely to have received a COVID-19 vaccine than their white counterparts, despite being disproportionately hit harder by the pandemic.)

This includes setting up pop-up vaccination sites, asking their pastors to spread the word, to preach the word to say that vaccinations are the right thing to do, Trantalis said. But were doing it without fanfare. Were doing it on a community-by-community basis. But were getting it done.

The state as a whole, however, is struggling to break down cultural and politcal barriers to successfully fight off the latest surge.

Unfortunately, Florida is a hot spot here in the nation, Trantalis said. One out of every five new cases is in Florida. Its really difficult to have to deal with that because it impacts so many people. It impacts schoolchildren. It impacts our hospitality business. It impacts people just coming to and from work because the message of getting vaccinated just doesnt seem to penetrate the culture here.

Adriana Belmonte is a reporter and editor covering politics and health care policy for Yahoo Finance. You can follow her on Twitter @adrianambells and reach her at adriana@yahoofinance.com.

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Florida mayor: 'Id ask the governor to rethink his agenda' - Yahoo Finance

Former long-time Cisco CEO John Chambers has done business in China for decades, dealing with corporate leaders and government officials. The various dealings were always tough, acknowledges Chambers, but importantly there was a certain predictability to them and a focus on win-win outcomes.

But that predictability has evaporated as the Chinese government cracks down on the business operations of Didi (DIDI) and other big tech players in the country, says Chambers.

As a result of this new unpredictability from Chinese officials, Chambers is suggesting to the leaders of the portfolio of upstart tech companies he oversees as founder and CEO of venture capital firm JC2 Ventures to be more cautious when doing business in the country.

"I think they [China] overreached in terms of the most recent technology moves they made in hampering their tech startups," Chambers said on Yahoo Finance Live. "Will they be the largest economy in the world inevitably? Yes. Will the U.S. and China eventually figure out how to get along? Yes. Do I think it will be bumpy? Yes. And will I be investing in China at the present time, especially as a small company that has technology leadership? I would not."

The harder line on China tech companies has pummeled investors in some of the most well-known names.

Shares of Tencent have plunged 32% over the last six months, Alibaba (BABA) is down 35% and Didi has crashed nearly 50%. JD.com (JD) shares have performed the best on a relative basis, but are still down 22%.

The Invesco Golden Dragon China ETF (PGJ) which holds investments in top China names such as Nio (NIO) and Alibaba has shed an astounding 55% in the past six months.

The situation may be poised to get even bumpier, too.

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler told Bloomberg on Tuesday the "clock is ticking" on delisting Chinese companies.

"I think they [China] have to get back to that [being more predictable]. I don't think it's in their country's best interest long-term or ours. Both sides are to blame there," Chambers added.

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Brian Sozzi is an editor-at-large and anchor at Yahoo Finance. Follow Sozzi on Twitter @BrianSozzi and on LinkedIn.

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Former Cisco CEO says he is 'not investing in China' - Yahoo Finance

COVID-19 vaccine requirements are on the rise.

Major cities including New York City, New Orleans, San Francisco and Los Angeles now require proof of vaccination to dine indoors, but the new mandates have raised questions about how restaurants can accurately ensure their diners are, in fact, vaccinated.

Reservations app OpenTable hopes to streamline that process through a new partnership with Clear, the identity verification platform typically seen at airports. Although the partnership won't include Clear's famous eye-scanning technology, it will allow users to create a free digital vaccine card to prove their vaccination status.

"The whole motivation here is to allow restaurants to do things the easy way," OpenTable President and CTO Joseph Essas told Yahoo Finance.

Digital vaccine card (Source: OpenTable)

Essas said diners using the app won't have to worry about bringing a physical copy of their CDC vaccine card to the restaurant.

For an added layer of verification, the Clear app lets users link to their vaccination record through its network of vaccine providers and pharmacies, including Walmart (WMT).

The integration, expected to launch in September, comes on the heels of a number of new safety features OpenTable has launched amid the pandemic.

Restaurants can now tag diners as "Verified for Entry" once requirements are met, in addition to listing "Proof of Vaccination" as a safety precaution on their profiles and communicating directly with diners through direct messaging.

As of Wednesday, 450 restaurants on OpenTable require proof of vaccination. OpenTable says it hosts over 60,000 restaurants, bars, and eateries on the platform, but it is already seeing "hundreds of restaurants" opt in to the new features.

"Some of it is a reflection of mandates," Essas said, adding that restaurants in vaccine-mandated cities like New York and San Francisco are more eager to participate.

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A sign is viewed at a restaurant in New York's Upper West Side on August 17, 2021, the first day where you have to show proof of having a Covid-19 vaccination to participate in indoor dining. The vaccine mandate also includes indoor gyms, and all indoor entertainment in New York City. (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)

For diners, it means "the expectation is set that I have to show the vaccination record, and there's no kind of unpleasant surprises as you walk in," he said.

In a new OpenTable poll, which surveyed 20,000 diners, 72% of respondents said theyre very willing to dine at a restaurant that requires proof of vaccination or consider that requirement a must."

Those results differ sharply from a recent Yahoo Finance Twitter poll where over 31,000 users responded to the question, "Would you avoid going to a restaurant if proof of COVID-19 vaccination is required for entry?" More than 80% of respondents answered "yes," while nearly 20% responded "no."

Overall, restaurant demand has been decreasing compared to the positive numbers last seen in May.

Seated diners in the U.S. are down 11% in August compared with July, according to the latest OpenTable data, with dining demand in the U.S. dropping about 1% in the past week alone.

"In some cities, there's definitely somewhat of a drop in demand," Essas said. "In other cities, there's not as much hard to say if it's related to these new mandates or not." Other factors like bad weather on the East Coast could have led to the recent dips.

"We'll watch [the data] carefully, and we'll know in the following weeks what's working and what's not working," said Essas.

OpenTable says it will not store personal health information or vaccination card data, but recent data hacks of a number of COVID-19 contact-tracing apps and vaccine portals have worried consumers and even the White House.

"Clear is a company that is the true expert in identity, security and connecting secure information to your identity," Essas said when asked how the company plans to keep users' health data secure.

"[OpenTable] does not want to store health sensitive information...so all of this viewer health information is being stored on the Clear side," he added.

Alexandra is a Producer & Entertainment Correspondent at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @alliecanal8193

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OpenTable partners with Clear to verify diners' vaccination status - Yahoo Finance

Masks mandates are on the rise as the Delta variant of COVID-19 continues to spread across the United States amplifying divisions between supporters of anti-coronavirus protocols and opponents who emphasize personal freedom.

On Thursday at midnight, L.A. County enacted an outdoor mask mandate for large events with over 10,000 attendees, including concerts, festivals, and sporting venues regardless of vaccination status. This comes after the L.A. County Public Health Department reported nearly 2,500 new COVID-19 cases earlier this week.

Los Angeles, which recently reinstated an indoor mask mandate for most public spaces, has been aggressive in its pandemic approach with other major cities following suit. Washington, D.C., Chicago, and San Diego have enacted similar indoor masking requirements of their own, while New York City just began requiring vaccination proof for key indoor activities.

On the East Coast, New York City hosted a star-studded outdoor concert on Saturday with Bruce Springsteen, Jennifer Hudson, Paul Simon, and others performing live in Central Park. The free concert required proof of vaccination to attend but, given the fact that it was also outdoors, masks were optional.

The Big Apple was the first major city to require vaccination proof in order to enter bars, gyms, restaurants, and concerts. Broadway, which is set to reopen next month after over one and a half years of shutdown, will require both proof of vaccination, along with masks.

LOS ANGELES, CA - AUGUST 20, 2021: Masked Dodger fans walk in the concourse behind the outfield to get to their seats as tonight is the beginning of a new LA County health mandate requiring venues with more than 10,000 people to require masks at Dodger Stadium on August 20, 2021 in Los Angeles, California.(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Still, questions remain over how city officials plan to enforce the mandate with black-market alternatives springing up online for those unwilling to get a proper vaccination. The more aggressive policies have sharpened the divisions between those willing to comply, and those who are pushing back for a variety of reasons.

In a new Yahoo Finance Twitter poll, over 31,000 users responded to the question, "Would you avoid going to a restaurant if proof of COVID-19 vaccination is required for entry?"

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80.3% of respondents answered "yes," whereas 19.7% responded "no."

The overwhelming amount of "yes" votes suggests some businesses may see a direct impact to operations as a result of the increased mandates, especially in major cities like NYC, where vaccine proof is already required. Others have pointed out the unintended consequences of such policies that may exclude vaccine-hesitant people of color and the working class.

Meanwhile, states like Texas and Florida, which have large pockets of unvaccinated individuals, have banned mask mandates a stark contrast compared to New York and California.

Public school boards have been at the center of the debate, with some defying governor orders by making masks a requirement. In South Florida, officials have made masks mandatory for both students and faculty in the public school system despite the state's overarching order.

Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis told Yahoo Finance in a recent interview that, if given the chance, he'd urge Florida Governor Ron Desantis to rethink the mask ban, explaining that "people are willing" to use them.

"If there is an alternative political agenda trying to appeal to some sort of outlier group thinking that's going to advance a person politically I think they're misjudging what people really want," the mayor continued.

Similarly, the Texas public school system saw a big win on masking last week. According to a public health guidance letter penned by the Texas Education Agency on Thursday, enforcement of Governor Greg Abbotts mask ban will be dropped temporarily due to ongoing court challenges to the ban.

So far in Texas, seven counties and 48 school districts have defied the governor by ordering mask mandates, according to The Associated Press.

Alexandra is a Producer & Entertainment Correspondent at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @alliecanal8193

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Mask mandates, vaccine proof is on the rise but not everyone is on board - Yahoo Finance

The commissioners from the ACC, Big Ten and Pac-12 formally announced an alliance Tuesday.

The Alliance will center on a shared vision for the future governance of college athletics. For now, the Alliance will mean the three leagues can, among other things, form a voting block that will blunt the growing influence of an expanded SEC. It also allows three leagues that consider themselves like-minded to gain voting power on issues as the NCAAs influence diminishes.

Discussions at the university presidential level have been significant and give the alliance the potential to be much more meaningful. Those talks have included both regular-season scheduling and how an expanded College Football Playoff would operate.

The Big Ten appears to be manuevering to blunt the growing might of the SEC. (Photo by David Berding/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

With 40 different schools, three league offices and multiple television partners stretching from coast to coast, a consensus on significant issues may be difficult to reach. But as the leagues dive further into discussions, the Alliances most ambitious reaches could include the following:

An agreement where each football team in the three conferences would play one opponent from each of the other two leagues on an annual basis. In most cases, the opponents would rotate. This could help maximize revenue in upcoming television deals for the Big Ten and Pac-12, which have expiring media rights deals in upcoming seasons. (The Big Ten deal is through the 2022 football season and the Pac-12 through the 2023 football season.)

Under such a plan, the Big Ten could drop its conference schedule from nine games to eight, and require each school to play one game against an ACC and a Pac-12 team each year. Wisconsin, for example, would play Virginia and Oregon one year, Florida State and UCLA the next. Big Ten schools would be allowed to schedule the additional non-conference games as they see fit.

If adopted, the Big Tens conference season would consist of six games within either the East or West Division and two crossover games. There are currently three crossover games.

ACC teams, which already play eight conference games, would schedule a Big Ten and a Pac-12 opponent annually.

The ACC adding value to its television rights is the tricky part, as it is stuck in a lopsided deal with ESPN until 2036 that it signed in order to obtain a television network. The Alliance is not expected to help the conference get out of the ESPN deal.

The Pac-12, which currently has nine league games, would consider dropping down to eight as well, or just use two of the three non-conference games in the Alliance.

Any Big Ten or Pac-12 team already playing Notre Dame, which has its own scheduling deal with the ACC, would be able to count the Irish as its ACC opponent.

Pac-12 members USC and Stanford have annual series with Notre Dame. Big Ten programs Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State and Purdue also have future series scheduled with the Irish.

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA - NOVEMBER 30: Ricky Aguayo #23 of the Florida State Seminoles kicks a field goal during a game against the Florida Gators at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on November 30, 2019 in Gainesville, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

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The new scheduling should create additional marquee games and perhaps increased television money, while potentially squeezing the SEC in non-conference scheduling.

Four ACC teams have annual games with in-state SEC rivals Clemson-South Carolina, Georgia Tech-Georgia, Florida State-Florida and Louisville-Kentucky. Those games would continue, but there would be a decided lack of available non-conference dates for other SEC teams seeking major opponents.

In terms of the College Football Playoff, the leagues appear to prefer a 12-team field like the one that has been proposed, but the Alliance wants more of a say in how that model unfolds. That current plan, which has not been agreed upon, was devised over a two-year period by a four-person group consisting of SEC commissioner Greg Sankey, Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby, Mountain West commissioner Craig Thompson and Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick. The ACC/Big Ten/Pac-12 now want more of a voice in how a 12-team playoff is built.

A possible wrinkle the group could propose would be a push for some playoff games to be controlled by conferences, not necessarily bowl games.

That would allow, say, the Big Ten to stage a playoff game at a neutral site within its footprint. That could happen inside the domed stadiums of Indianapolis and Detroit, or maybe outdoors in Cleveland or Chicago. This would replace using only traditional bowl games, which are located in the South or West.

How the playoff's television rights would be put out for bid, how many networks would be allowed to carry the games and how the teams are selected could also be addressed. The Alliance is wary of ESPN, who has exclusive rights to all SEC games starting in 2024, also having full control of the playoff. ESPN has rights to the playoff through 2025 and an exclusive negotiating window. There has long been a strong feeling within the sport that multiple networks broadcasting the playoff would be better financially and for exposure.

Exactly how much of the above becomes the official position of the Alliance remains to be seen. With this many teams and this many opinions, any plan is likely to be altered.

However, just over a month after word broke in the Houston Chronicle of Oklahoma and Texas seeking to join the SEC, the three remaining major conferences are working together and thinking boldly about what they can do going forward.

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With college football Alliance near, what could it ultimately mean for Big Ten, Pac-12 and ACC? - Yahoo Sports

Retirees who limit retirement account withdrawals to RMDs could be making a mistake, according to JPMorgan Chase.

Though retirees are only required to take a certain portion of their retirement savings out as distributions each year, a study from JPMorgan Chase shows that there is likely good reason to take out more.

A withdrawal approach based solely on required minimum distributions (RMDs) not only fails to meet retirees annual income needs but can also leave money on the table at the end of their lives, the financial services firm found.

A financial advisor can help you right-size your retirement income. Find an advisor today.

Using internal data and an Employee Benefit Research Institute database, JPMorgan Chase studied 31,000 people as they approached and entered retirement between 2013 and 2018. The vast majority (84%) of the retirees who had already reached RMD age were only withdrawing the minimum. Meanwhile, 80% of retirees still had not reached RMD age were yet to take distributions from their accounts, the study found, suggesting a desire to preserve capital for later in retirement.

Retirees prudence surrounding withdrawals may be misguided, though.

The RMD approach has some clear shortcomings, JPMorgan Chases Katherine Roy and Kelly Hahn wrote. It does not generate income that supports retirees declining spending in todays dollars, a behavior that we see occurs with age. In fact, the RMD approach tends to generate more income later in retirement and can even leave a sizable account balance at age 100.

What Are RMDs?

Retirees who limit retirement account withdrawals to RMDs could be making a mistake, according to JPMorgan Chase.

An RMD is the minimum amount the government requires most retirees withdraw from their tax-advantaged retirement accounts at a certain age. In 2020, the RMD age was raised from 70.5 to 72. The JPMorgan Chase study examined data that predated this change.

While most employer-sponsored retirement plans and individual retirement accounts (IRAs) are subject to RMDs, owners of Roth IRAs are exempt from taking minimum annual distributions.

The following retirement accounts all come with required minimum distributions:

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An RMD is calculated by dividing a persons account balance (as of Dec. 31 of the previous year) by his current life expectancy factor, a figure set by the IRS. For example, a 75-year-old has a life expectancy factor of 22.9. If a 75-year-old retiree has $250,000 in a retirement account, he would be required to withdraw at least $10,917 from his account that year.

RMD Approach vs. Declining Consumption Strategy

Retirees who limit retirement account withdrawals to RMDs could be making a mistake, according to JPMorgan Chase.

Using an RMD approach, a retiree simply sticks to the minimum required distributions each year. This strategy does have several notable advantages over a more static technique, like the 4% rule. For one, using actuarial statistics, the RMD approach factors in a persons expectancy based on his current age; the 4% method does not. Also, by only withdrawing the minimum each year, the account owner will lessen his tax bill for the year and maintain maximum tax-deferred growth.

However, Roy and Hahn of JPMorgan Chase note that a more flexible withdrawal strategy tied to actual spending behaviors of retirees is more effective for meeting income needs and lowering the possibility of dying with a considerable account balance left over.

Assuming people spend more earlier in retirement than during their latter years, a withdrawal strategy should match this declining consumption, even if it means taking more than the required minimum distribution, Roy and Hahn wrote.

On the consumption front, we believe the most effective way to withdraw wealth is to support actual spending behaviors, as spending tends to decline in todays dollars with age, they wrote. Unlike the RMD approach, reflecting actual spending allows retirees to support higher spending early in retirement and achieve greater utility of their savings.

In comparing the RMD approach to the declining consumption strategy, JPMorgan Chase found that a 72-year-old with $100,000 in retirement savings could spend more money each year using the declining consumption strategy approach until age 87 when the RMD strategy would support higher spending.

Meanwhile, the same retiree would still have more than $20,000 in his account by the time he turns 100 if he limited his distributions to the minimum amount. A 72-year-old using the declining consumption approach would only have a couple thousand left over by age 100.

Though RMD approach may increase a retirees odds of being able to leave money to loved ones, a retiree whos more concerned with meeting his own needs would likely benefit from an option tied to his declining consumption later in life.

Bottom Line

A whopping 84% of retirees who reached RMD age were limiting their retirement account withdrawals to the minimums that are required, a JPMorgan Chase study found. This method may leave a retiree with not enough annual income than what is needed. A withdrawal approach more closely aligned with a retirees spending needs will provide more retirement income and lessen the chances that retirement funds will outlast the retiree.

Tips for Retirement Saving

Do you have a financial plan for retirement? Its never too late to begin planning and a financial advisor can help you do just that. SmartAssets free tool can match you with up to three local financial advisors in as little as five minutes. If youre ready to be paired up, get started now.

If youre still years or decades away from retiring, knowing where you stand on the path to retirement is still important. SmartAssets free 401(k) calculator can help you determine how much you can expect your savings to grow over time and how much you may have when the time comes to retire.

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84% of Retirees Are Making This RMD Mistake - Yahoo Finance