Recorded April 15, 2020.In this episode, Dr. O’Connell is joined by Senator Bill Dodd, who represents California’s 3rd District. They discuss the current state of affairs as well as what the government is doing to help certain groups and industries.Questions from this episode include:How is the COVID-19 pandemic affecting the economy in the area you serve?What is being done currently to support the small businesses in your area and what advice do you have for small business owners to help them weather this storm?Do you have thoughts about how and when to begin reopening the economy?What are your thoughts about how this pandemic is affecting students and what can be done to ensure they are receiving the education they deserve?Your host is Dr. Ted O’Connell, family physician, educator, and author of numerous textbooks and peer-reviewed articles. He holds academic appointments at UCSF, UC Davis, and Drexel University's medical schools and also founded the Kaiser Permanente Napa-Solano Community Medicine and Global Health Fellowship, the first program in the U.S. to formally combine both community medicine and global health. Follow Ted on Instagram (@tedoconnellmd) and Twitter (@tedoconnell)! Senator Bill Dodd was elected in 2016 to represent California’s 3rd Senate District, Sen. Bill Dodd is a fifth-generation Californian and lifelong resident of the district, where he grew up on a small family farm in Napa County. The district includes all of Napa and Solano counties and portions of Contra Costa, Sacramento, Sonoma and Yolo counties. Sen. Dodd serves as the chair of the Governmental Organization Committee and is a member of the Transportation Committee, the Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee and the Insurance Committee. He is co-chair of the Senate Select Committee on California’s Wine Industry and the Legislative Delta Caucus.  His work in the Senate has spanned many topics – from improving public education to protecting seniors and the environment. He is one of the Legislature's most prolific legislators, authoring 67 laws in the last 5 years. As a senator representing wildfire-torn Napa and Sonoma counties, he co-chaired the 2018 conference committee on wildfire safety and prevention and authored numerous bills that were signed into law to protect Californians from future infernos and accompanying utility rate hikes.Prior to his election to the Senate, Sen. Dodd represented the 4th Assembly District. In the Assembly, he worked to help small businesses, protect the environment, and support seniors and working families. He advanced a balanced, sustainable budget that invests in our education system from preschool through higher education. He helped establish the state’s Earned Income Tax Credit, promote career technical education, and create the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument – preserving over 330,000 acres of the California Coast Ranges in Napa, Yolo, Solano, Lake, Colusa, Glenn and Mendocino counties.Before the Assembly, Sen. Dodd served on the Napa County Board of Supervisors for 14 years. His accomplishments include the completion of Napa’s flood control project, which protects thousands of properties from flooding, restored 900 acres of environmental wetlands and produced $1 billion of investment in local businesses.Prior to his time in elected office, Sen. Dodd was a successful small business owner. He owned and operated one of the largest full-service Culligan Water operations in California, and served as president of the water quality industry’s state and national trade associations. Sen. Dodd is a graduate of California State University, Chico.Sen. Dodd and his wife Mary live in Napa and have five grown children and nine grandchildren. The Napa Valley Chamber of Commerce recognized the Dodds' philanthropic efforts by awarding Sen. Dodd its 2014 “Citizen of the Year” for raising over $3 million for local charities.Submit Your Questions for the PodcastSend an email to [email protected] or check out covidpodcast.comWhat Can You Do? You can help spread commonsense about COVID-19 by supporting this podcast. Hit subscribe, leave a positive review, and share it with your friends especially on social media. We can each do our part to ensure that scientifically accurate information about the pandemic spreads faster than rumors or fears. Remember to be vigilant, but remain calm. For the most trusted and real time information on COVID-19 and the coronavirus pandemic, both the CDC and WHO have dedicated web pages to keep the public informed. The information presented in this podcast is intended for educational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice. Producers: Madison Linden and Christopher Breitigan. Executive Producer: Patrick C. Beeman, MD Special thank you to Iminotech for supporting credible information about Covid-19.