IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Employees at Iowa’s public universities may get an additional 80 hours of paid sick leave under an emergency measure to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Board of Regents President Mike Richards used his new emergency powers to authorize the universities and special schools to provide the extra leave.

He also waived limits on employees’ ability to use accrued sick leave to care for family members and to provide child care for their dependents. In addition, he relaxed limits on an employee’s ability to donate or receive vacation time to be used as sick leave.