Here’s our conversation, edited and condensed:

Take me back to when you first became aware of the coronavirus as a potentially very serious threat. When was it, and what was going through your mind?

Orange County had the second confirmed case of coronavirus in the country on Jan. 25.

This is a very diverse community, with a lot of international travel, U.C.I., the business community, a large Chinese-American community, so I think our office began immediately to take it very seriously.

I wrote to the C.D.C. and requested a briefing for Orange County Congress members. Right away, we put together a F.A.Q. It was one of the first ones that was rolled out.

A lot of this, for me, has been frustration that Congress and some of our local leaders and the administration have been slow.

What are your top priorities going forward for Californians, in terms of consumer protection or economic stimulus?

The affordability of care is one big priority — the affordability of treatment.

The second is trying to help people, like small business owners, understand, as they wade through all of this, things like, “How do I apply for that? What if I’ve already let my employees go?”

I’m trying to use some of my skills as a teacher to educate people about what help is available. Unemployment insurance varies state by state.