BANGOR (AP) – Elderly Mainers are bracing for increased health care costs when a 17 percent increase to some Medicare plans takes effect next year.

Now Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Maine has proposed an additional hike in a set of supplemental plans that fills critical gaps in some health coverage.

The company has proposed a 5.8 percent rate increase for 10 supplemental plans known as Medigap. About 36,000 Mainers are enrolled in three of the most popular plans through Anthem, said Bill Cohen, an Anthem spokesman.

But the increase is needed so the company can pay for an anticipated increase in enrollments and utilization, he said.

“We’ve done our best to project the real costs,” Cohen said. “We have a responsibility to charge the premiums we need to cover the costs.”

As with most health plans, publicly funded Medicare benefits are limited. The 10 supplement options, which are administered by private companies such as Anthem, provide a variety of benefits.

In Maine, about 15 companies offer these plans. Anthem’s most popular Medigap plan has risen from about $77 a month in 1998 to about $136.

One part of Medicare, which covers most eligible Americans older than 65 at no cost, pays for essential in-hospital care. The supplemental plans, which pay for office visits and other outpatient care, will be affected.

In August, the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced a 17 percent premium increase for plans that cover doctor visits and most other non-hospital expenses.

Premiums are updated annually under a formula set by law. The federal government picks up about 75 percent of the cost of supplemental plan benefits and beneficiaries pay the rest.

AP-ES-11-02-04 0216EST