* Frank Mautino raises the white flag…

A key downstate lawmaker who has worked since last summer to craft legislation that would create a health-insurance exchange for more than 1 million Illinoisans has given up, at least for now.

State Rep. Frank Mautino, D-Spring Valley, said he decided he would try again later after seeing Republican opposition harden in recent weeks.

There aren’t enough votes among Democrats to muscle a bill through the Democrat-controlled General Assembly, he said. […]

Mautino said it became obvious that bipartisan legislation couldn’t be passed in the wake of a statewide tour in April by House Republican Leader Tom Cross of Oswego and U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock, R-Peoria.

The pair questioned potential costs to the state budget of implementing an exchange and a federally subsidized expansion of the Medicaid program - both key components of the federal Affordable Care Act, President Barack Obama’s signature legislative achievement.

* From that April statewide tour…

“The idea of creating a costly new program with an untold number of new regulations is a non-starter in our current budget climate,” Leader Cross said. “We simply cannot afford to plunge into the rabbit hole created by open-ended federal mandates put in place by the Obama Administration and cross our fingers and hope for the best. We cannot and should not move forward on creating exchanges until we know all the parameters.”

“It’s impossible to kick a field goal if you don’t know where the goal posts are,” Cross added.

Rep. Schock added, “With so much uncertainty, states would be wise to hold off on creating insurance exchanges until the Obama Administration either gets its act together – or gets replaced.”

* Mautino’s quest for a bipartisan solution was sharply criticized from the left as too pro-insurance company. But now that they’ve managed to derail a bipartisan solution, some Republicans are pushing hard against any executive order by Gov. Pat Quinn…

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn may use an executive order to establish a health insurance exchange, a website where consumers could comparison shop for insurance that’s a key piece of President Barack Obama’s health care law, according to Quinn’s chief health care adviser.

Michael Gelder, the governor’s adviser, said the Legislature’s workload on Medicaid and pension reform makes it unlikely lawmakers will be able to pass legislation authorizing an insurance exchange during the current session, which is scheduled to end later this month.

Looming federal deadlines leave the governor with two choices: calling the Legislature back into special session or issuing an executive order, Gelder said.

But Republicans said an executive order would be inappropriate, especially before the U.S. Supreme Court rules on the Affordable Care Act. A decision is expected in June.

“The issuance of an executive order to establish a health insurance exchange by Gov. Quinn at this time is premature on a number of levels,” said Sen. Bill Brady, a Bloomington Republican who co-chaired a legislative study committee on the health insurance exchange. “We expect the U.S. Supreme Court to issue a ruling on Obamacare in just a few weeks.”

An executive order would undercut the legislative process and cut out stakeholders who’ve been involved so far, Brady said.

“There is no consensus, but the governor should let that process play out,” he said.

There’s no consensus, time is running out on the session, but nobody should do anything. OK.

What we have here, essentially, is DC partisan politics invading Springfield. Thanks, Aaron.

* Meanwhile…

No matter what happens with the state’s budget problems, state Rep. Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro, said welfare and Medicaid reform have to be part of the solution. Bost said tougher standards for eligibility and better enforcement of those standards must be part of any reform.

“Because Illinois’ enforcement is so lax, there is plenty of room for fraud,” he said.

Bost said Medicaid reform passed last year was an example of sound policy but poor execution because Gov. Pat Quinn refused to implement reforms.

Illinois Department of Health and Family Services spokesman Mike Claffey said Bost missed the mark when he targeted enforcement measures written into the 2011 bipartisan reform package.

Claffey said electronic verification of residency through data matching began in April. Screeners also call possible recipients if address verification cannot be determined through electronic sources.

“If verification cannot be provided, eligibility is canceled,” Claffey said. “This protects the integrity of the program by making sure that those who are enrolled meet the requirements.”

Up next is electronic verification of income through cooperation with the state’s department of revenue, Claffey said.