America has been responding to the Covid-19 pandemic like its a hurricane  stay inside until it passes. A more constructive and realistic approach would be to treat it like driving a car  find rules that reduce the risk.

Ordinary life during a pandemic shares a significant characteristic with highway driving. In both cases, the behavior of an individual can have a life or death impact not only on that individual but on many others. A reckless driver may injure innocent pedestrians or get into a head-on collision with another car that is obeying all the rules. Likewise, a careless virus carrier may infect others, spreading Covid-19 to persons who had been healthy.

Driving an automobile is risky. In 2018, the number of auto-related fatalities in the United States was 36,560, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Yet we dont ban automobiles, nor do we impose a 10 mile an hour speed limit. Doing so would eliminate most of those deaths and injuries, but it would also adversely affect economic activity enabled by faster transportation of people and products.

Overall, the benefits of automobiles exceed the costs. Individuals knowingly assume the risks. Businesses compete to make money by reducing those risks. To deal with market failures and externalities, and to provide a certain minimum floor, we have regulatory mechanisms imposed by government to mitigate risks and compensate for losses.

These same approaches can be useful in guiding the public policy response to the coronavirus, showing the way to a middle ground that minimizes harm without excessive costs to either the economy or individual freedom.

States attempt to make sure drivers meet minimum standards of training, safety, and competence by issuing licenses and requiring applicants to pass a driving test administered by a professional. States also regulate blood alcohol levels to reduce the risk of accidents caused by drunk drivers.

State and local governments also impose speed limits, depending on the road or the neighborhood. Police enforce compliance. A driver who repeatedly runs stoplights or is caught speeding will see his auto insurance rates skyrocket and may even have his license revoked.

Federal law regulates auto manufacturers as well as drivers. Cars have to come with seat belts, turn signals, and brake lights. Beyond the government-set minimums, some car buyers choose to vehicles with enhanced safety technology. Airbags, anti-lock brakes, traction control, and backup cameras were once all optional features. Now they are standard in nearly all cars. If we had banned cars or restricted them to 10 mph, we would not have had the progress of safety technology.

What might an auto-style safety framework for dealing with Covid-19 look like?

As a minimum, state and local governments can require businesses to have all public-facing employees wear masks, wash their hands, disinfect surfaces, provide readily available hand sanitizer, and take their temperatures twice a day. Having employees wear masks is like having drivers wear seat belts.

Safety equipment in commercial establishments could be subject to inspection, with penalties for violating legally mandated minimum standards. Consumers who choose to could still opt for home delivery or for restaurants that offer well-spaced tables or open-air dining.

Just as drivers stop at intersections, employees and visitors may be asked to stop at entrances to office buildings or shopping malls to either certify that they are healthy or get their temperature checked.

Just as automakers compete to introduce new safety equipment, let retailers and shopping malls compete to innovate in anti-virus precautions. Once consumers see one company visibly, intelligently, and cost-effectively mitigating risks, they will insist others do so. This could include practices such as touch-free payment, self-checkout, and limiting crowd size.

Other commercial innovations already being widely implemented include having exclusive hours for seniors, and slightly reducing store hours to increase emphasis on store cleaning and surface disinfection. Most of these precautions are easy to see and for customers to verify.

Consumers will turn around and walk out of a store with inadequate customer spacing. Changes happen quickly when customers, employees, and businesses are aware of the risks and costs of positive and negative behaviors.

The current restrictions  forcing many businesses to close involuntarily  have cost more than 10 million American jobs in just two weeks. More than $5 trillion in wealth has disappeared, and the federal government is borrowing trillions more to try to provide economic relief.

Beyond the mounting economic costs, the current restrictions significantly undermine American freedoms  the liberty to work, to associate, to partake in worship, property rights, the freedom to contract, and the freedom of movement. Its hard to recall a more expansive, expensive, or intrusive set of government restrictions.

We need to get America back to work quickly. Businesses and individuals can adapt dynamically to intelligently guard their interests, seek opportunities, and make trade-offs. The government can provide the traffic signals and the safety standards. That approach to public health is consistent with a free and economically vibrant country, rather than in conflict with it. Its tested on our highways every day.

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Mr. Lampert is the chairman of ESL Investments in Miami, Florida. Photo: From www.eddielampert.com.