Maine employers facing higher health insurance premiums in 2006 can expect to pay an additional 2 percent because of a fee assessed by the state to fund Gov. John Baldacci’s DirigoChoice health plan.

Some health insurers say they intend to add that amount to rate hikes already averaging 8 to 16 percent.

The administration said the fee is justified because of the savings that its Dirigo Health reform has generated in the state’s health care system.

But critics question whether Dirigo has actually produced the $43.7 million in savings claimed by the state, while employers say the fee is just another example of the obstacles faced by businesses that operate in Maine.

Hannaford Bros., the Scarborough-based supermarket chain, is sharply critical of the fee and has advised employees to contact their legislators.

“Maine historically has not been a business-friendly place to do business and this certainly has not helped,” said spokeswoman Caren Epstein.

Hannaford and UnumProvident, the nation’s largest disability insurer, say health care costs in Maine are higher than in any other state in which they operate.

UnumProvident lobbyist David Brenerman said the company’s intent is not to criticize Dirigo Health.

“We would prefer it be financed in a different way and are looking for ideas on how to do it,” he said.

Baldacci’s health policy director, Trish Riley, expressed concern that the controversy surrounding the fee is distracting from Dirigo’s goals of cutting health care costs, covering the uninsured and promoting quality.

Riley said Dirigo’s savings from such initiatives as voluntary caps on hospital costs and coverage of the uninsured are measured over only one year and will grow over time, slowing the rate of increase in health care costs.

“We have put teeth into Dirigo, but it will take a little bit of time for those reforms to kick in,” she said.

The fee was designed to offset Dirigo’s savings, but the insurance industry trade group says in lawsuits filed against the state that any savings they’ve seen are outweighed by the fee. With insurers allowed to pass on the fee, businesses say they find themselves in a position of subsidizing the state without seeing any benefit.

Responding to the opposition, Baldacci has endorsed legislation that would bar insurers from increasing premiums to cover the cost of the fee. A bill, sponsored by Sen. John Martin, D-Eagle Lake, is expected to be taken up when the Legislature reconvenes in January.

The fee applies to paid claims starting in January, but the state will not start to collect from the insurance companies until April when state funding for Dirigo runs out.