AUGUSTA -- The debate over Question 1 on the November ballot is heating up. Supporters are worried voters may be confused by the question and opponents will launch major campaign efforts Monday.

Supporters of Question 1, which seeks to repeal beverage taxes put in place to support Dirigo Health, said Friday they are worried the wording of the question may confuse voters because those who want to reject the taxes must vote "yes."

"It's a counterintuitive vote," said Ted O'Meara, spokesman for the group behind the repeal. "High taxes is seen as a negative. You tend to want to say no, we want to stop this."

But because the question is a people's veto which seeks to overturn action taken by the Legislature, it begins with the words "do you want to reject."

Here's the question:

"Do you want to reject the parts of a new law that change the method of funding Maine's Dirigo Health Program through charging health insurance companies a fixed fee on paid claims and adding taxes to malt liquor, wine and soft drinks?"

On the other side of the issue, a statewide coalition of more than 30 groups will announce its opposition to the question Monday.

Led by the Maine Medical Association, the coalition includes AARP, Maine AFL-CIO and the Maine Women's Lobby.

"It is time for Maine voters to realize what Question 1 is really about," Gordon Smith of the Maine Medical Association said in a statement. "This is about health coverage for Maine's children and hard-working adults."

At events in Portland and Bangor, the coalition will explain its opposition and unveil its first television advertisement.

O'Meara; Yes on 1 campaign chairman Newell Augur; and local businessmen John Babb, president of J&S Oil, based in Manchester, and Joe Karter, owner of Jokas Discount Beverages in Waterville, met with members of the Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel editorial board on Friday.

"Who doesn't go to the local store and get a beer, bottle of wine or soda?" said Babb, whose company runs convenience stores in central Maine.

Augur is chairman of Fed Up With Taxes, a coalition of business owners, the Maine State Chamber of Commerce and beverage industry groups that formed earlier this year after lawmakers passed a bill to institute the new taxes.

The taxes are on beer, wine, soda and flavored drinks. The taxes would add 16 cents to a six pack of beer and 11 cents to a liter of soda, for example.

There will also be a new tax on the syrup used to make soda -- $4 a gallon -- and a levy on paid health-insurance claims of 1.8 percent.

Insurance companies pay the levy, but tax opponents say that cost likely would be passed along to consumers in the form of higher premiums or co-pays.

The new funding proposal is designed to take the place of the savings-offset payment, a complicated and unpopular method for funding Dirigo. The program, approved in 2003, provides health insurance to about 18,000 people, some of whom are on Medicaid. It has an annual budget of $48 million.

Augur said the group decided to try to overturn the new funding source because it says it would drive up costs on common items, the state already has a high tax burden and lawmakers passed the law without getting public comment.

"This is literally, absolutely the worst time to ask Mainers to pay more for everyday items," Augur said.

But in his statement, Smith said Dirigo needs a new source of funding to protect health care and cost-saving programs put in place by Dirigo.

"Increased pennies on beer, wine and sugared drinks is a much fairer way to fund health coverage than the current funding," he said.

Tough economic times make it even more important to make sure families and small businesses can continue to get affordable health insurance, Smith said.

Karter said not only does he compete with chain stores for business, he worries about losing more customers to New Hampshire. "I carry a lot of inventory," he said. "All my products are going to cost me more immediately. People are just going to buy less."

Susan Cover -- 620-7015

scover@centralmaine.com