A popular program allowing Medicare patients to get hospital care at home would be extended until 2030 under a bill passed in the U.S. House of Representatives and awaiting consideration by the Senate.

The bill was passed by the House December 1 and referred to a Senate committee the next day. The federal government shutdown in October forced a pause in the Medicare program, and it would face another pause next month if budget negotiations break down again.

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As of last fall, 366 hospitals nationwide had participated in the hospital-at-home program, serving 31,000 patients, according to a federal report. The program, officially called Acute Hospital Care at Home, allows patients who would otherwise be hospitalized to receive care at home with a combination of nurse visits, monitoring equipment and remote doctor visits.

“The hospital-at-home model gives hospitals the flexibility to treat certain patients in the comfort and convenience of their own homes rather than in the hospital,” said Pennsylvania Republican U.S. Representative Lloyd Smucker, speaking on the House floor during debate on the bill December 1.

“A number of hospitals in my district have used the program to great effect,” he said. “One hospital system has accepted more than 800 patients, freeing up more than 1,500 hospital bed-days and saving approximately $1.1 million.”

The bill still must be passed by the Senate and signed by President Donald Trump before taking effect. Another popular Medicare program, which offers telehealth visits, was also paused in the shutdown and would still be subject to a pause if the short-term funding bill passed in November ends January 30 without a new budget agreement.