(CNN) The House of Representatives is not expected to return before May 4, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said in a notice Monday afternoon.

Democratic leaders had previously eyed the week of April 20 as a tentative return date, but members have become even more reluctant to travel during the Covid-19 pandemic since they went home to their districts at the end of March.

"I have no interest in going back now. How do you get there? Train? Plane? Last time I got there, I drove for about five hours. People across the country are not going to take a chance," House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nita Lowey, a Democrat from New York, said earlier Monday during an interview with C-SPAN.

"Unless it's safe, I think we are better off doing our work, as we have been doing, passing bills by unanimous consent. And, hopefully, there is a bipartisan will to really focus on what we need and leave partisan politics aside."

The scheduling change comes as congressional leaders remain far apart on a measure to ensure an emergency loan program for the nation's small businesses will have enough funding. The White House has requested an additional $251 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program, which was instituted as part of the historic $2.2 trillion CARES Act.

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