The modern digital economy has given us the ability to craft unique approaches to work and consumption that never would have been possible just a few years ago, and it should not have taken a pandemic to embrace policies that encourage this new age sharing economy.
For too long, states have tried to regulate remote and freelance work. They’ve discouraged digital and part-time work by forcing companies to treat them as full-time employees. In an age when more and more people are combining a variety of work opportunities for a full profession, we shouldn’t discourage innovators from creating these opportunities. This includes those seeking to drive for Uber or do graphic design work through Fiverr among countless other jobs.
The state of Mississippi discourages cottage food operation by placing caps and a variety of limits on how these businesses can operate. These policies are often aimed at protecting already established operators from competition. Yet, the person who loses in all of this is the young mother trying to make a bit of extra cash by selling cookies or sweets, as well as the consumer who would choose to buy her product.
In an age when digital conversation has become all the more important, it’s astounding that that the entrepreneur is not legally allowed to go on Facebook or Instagram to share or promote her business.
Many of these types of regulations are revealed to be little more than hollow shells of protectionism. They are policies that carry little good, while discouraging certain businesses from even attempting to operate. Amidst the current crisis, states around the country are removing some of these barriers such as those pertaining to certificates of need, which limit what healthcare providers can open hospitals or care centers, telemedicine rules, which limit the ability for doctors to talk with their patients via online video access, and arbitrary delivery policies, that limit what truckers can haul in order to prop up certain distributors.
In the midst of this crisis, every time a politician comes out and announces that we are suspending such a rule, it is worth asking if we truly needed it in the first place.
Why were we limiting healthcare operators that could have brought more facilities to rural communities? Why were we limiting doctors’ ability to connect with their patients through the internet, especially when this could have mitigated potential hospital exposure to viruses and bacteria amongst the most vulnerable? Why did we stop truckers from hauling food and alcohol in the same truck, when this could have streamlined critical deliveries, especially when communities are in need of resources?
I can’t help but wonder if the legislature feels slightly ridiculous for shutting down these changes previously along with many others. This year, along with legislation that would have allowed for certificate of need changes, the Mississippi Senate killed the direct shipment of wine to households. When so many stores are forced to close, and many of us are quarantined in our homes, this policy seems all the worse.
Over the past few days, I’ve gotten countless emails from DoorDash, PostMates, GrubHub and other food delivery services advertising their businesses. These groups and others have long been discouraged from operating by limiting what they are allowed to deliver and favoring existing businesses, such as taxi companies over Uber, or restaurants over food trucks. During the current virus outbreak, many of these same companies are removing delivery fees in order to make it easier for people to get vital supplies. Other existing companies, restaurants, and grocery stores are turning to delivery and curbside pickup in order to stay open and continue operating.
Yet, while a virus highlights the importance of resource access for the many who are forced to currently stay home, what about those who, due to ailment or ability, were already so often forced to stay home? Over-regulating food, healthcare, and resource access seems terrible during a time of crisis, but it has been hurting people long before the coronavirus.
I am thankful that many of our societal leaders, recognizing the need to create alternative opportunities for work and consumption, have been willing to set aside their entrenched opposition to innovation and remove some of these burdensome rules and regulations.
And, I only hope that moving forward we can take an equally open mindset to new opportunities beyond this crisis, after all, many of these rules have hurt us for too long. I just wish it hadn’t taken a pandemic to realize that.