Mills, the Hamptonburgh resident and superintendent of the state Insurance Department, visited the Times Herald-Record yesterday to lobby for legislation that would require insurers to seek the superintendent's prior approval before raising the premiums they charge.

There are two prior-approval bills bouncing around the Legislature; one would require the superintendent's OK for rate increases of 10 percent or more, the other for hikes of 5 percent or more.

The superintendent's office had prior-approval power a few years ago but lost it in a lawsuit. These days, insurers can charge whatever the market will bear. Many family plans cost $1,000 a month or more, after several years of double-digit percentage increases. The situation has grown so bleak, even the business community is clamoring for regulation.

"The number one concern from our members is the cost of health insurance," said John D'Ambrosio, president of the Orange County Chamber of Commerce. "The worst-case scenario is when they simply drop the program, and then these people join the uninsured."

The state Medical Society has said it supports the idea, and at a news conference in White Plains Tuesday, the Westchester County Association (a business advocacy group) and the Northern Metropolitan Hospital Association said they're joining forces to push for it.

Still, the proposal hasn't met with universal acclaim. There is some concern among providers that insurers might compensate for smaller premium hikes by cutting payments to doctors and hospitals or raising co-pays.

"These bills would be tantamount to government-imposed price controls. They'll do nothing to impact the rising cost of health care," said Mark Amodeo, spokesman for the New York State Conference of Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans. "You have to get to the root cause of health-care costs, and these bills do nothing to that effect."

Mills disagrees. He said a prior-approval requirement for auto insurance, along with a crackdown on fraud, has helped lower auto premiums. He suspects that the large health-premium hikes in recent years may not be justified.

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