There may be some silver linings to the pandemic, after all.
Like House Speaker Nancy Pelosi suggested, let’s think big.
That does not mean doubling down on the kinds of barriers that impeded the response to COVID-19 at virtually every turn, or $3 trillion in more spending to bail out decades of irresponsible decisions. It means responding to the economic and health crises we face now—and those we will face in the future—by building a more innovative, more diverse and more resilient economy.
Americans from all walks of life have answered the call during this emergency, creating momentum for the reforms that will get the economy going and creating a proof of concept for the next phase and beyond.
Right now, the focus should be on clearing the way for people and businesses to safely and efficiently deliver goods and services as soon they are able to do so.
When distillers wanted to pitch in and shift their production facilities from liquor to hand sanitizer, they were barred by FDA regulations. Those regulations, and hundreds of similar outdated restrictions, have now been temporarily waived. Making those waivers permanent would increase opportunities for economic growth, boost our ability to adapt quickly and help increase our resilience in the next crisis.
When doctors and nurses in states less affected by coronavirus wanted to travel to harder hit states, many were blocked by rules restricting their ability to practice. Those rules, too, were temporarily waived.
Economic growth and our ability to respond quickly to changed circumstances are stymied by hundreds upon hundreds of such restrictions that bar the way for workers in fields ranging from barbers to bartenders, from locksmiths to taxidermists, affecting every corner of our economy and reaching far beyond the pandemic response.
