Gary Karr Quotes (25 Quotes)

We recognize that pharmacists have done a heroic job in the first two weeks. We're working very hard to make sure that won't happen again.

Beneficiaries should be hearing from their former employer or union this fall about their coverage options.

Over the long haul, we believe the states will save money.

It's simply asking for comment. Earlier, there were predictions we would not have enough plans. That's clearly not the case now. The question is will it still be of service to beneficiaries if you had fewer. Again, it's not a commitment.

I can't go to a tool and put in my drugs and find out which plan gives me the cheapest drugs. I can't do that at all. This, however, does allow you to do that.

The card is not valid once you sign up for a plan.

It's important to know that a lot of people will never reach the 2,250 amount. None of this applies to the Medicare beneficiaries who qualify for extra help because they will have no premiums, no deductibles, and no gaps in coverage.

There are going to be people who are in the program who haven't applied for the low-income subsidy.

The bridge commission has become a prime example of unethical behavior and cronyism. The individuals we have put forth are all capable of serving as a watchdog to protect the interests of the people and ensure that taxpayer money is not wasted on patronage no-bid contracts.

One of the concerns we have is that folks are overly anxious and think they've got to go find a plan today, or find a plan tomorrow or find a plan on Monday. Not only do they not need to decide now, they can't decide now.

As I understand it, every state was asked to participate in this lawsuit. The vast majority obviously did not.

This is going very well. It's not a magic system.

He has known for a long time that he would not be renominated, ... What I told him about the state was that the eyes of the Democratic Party were on us, wondering why we let this happen, why it wasn't us blowing the whistle on Martha Bark.

As Medicare officials try to help seniors understand and enroll in the new benefit, Karr charged, the report shows that Democrats are more interested in rehashing a political argument that raged before Congress approved federally subsidized coverage for seniors in 2003. Now the effort should really be about educating people and not continuing the same old rhetoric that they have been saying for two years, ... This is not a new expression of the policy views of the minority staff of the Government Reform Committee.

Our analysis shows there have not been any significant price increases at all and pretty big savings. We have done a much wider monitoring and have not found any large changes in drug prices except where there was a data error.

There are just a lot of companies competing for business in California. It's a robust market.

Even if it's apparently limited to that group, it's not acceptable. These people need to have their medications.

We certainly acknowledge there have been some problems. This is a 30-40 billion program. It's a big transition for many people.

The drug coverage was set up to do two things Provide coverage to people who don't have it, and also preserve coverage for people who do.

You'll be able to plug in essentially what's important to you. If you say, 'I want to find a plan that's less than 20,' then it will give you that, and you can then sub-sort basically on what you want. . . . Folks shouldn't be anxious about making the perfect choice. Once you narrow it down to the things you think you need, there is not a wrong choice there. You're fine.

There's been times when it's been extremely slow or just has stopped working.

If they're not paying for the claim they should have, we can make sure they do.

We are examining our systems to make sure there is not some hole where people are not getting picked up.

We want to make sure people know they don't have to decide today, tomorrow, even Monday. There's a little bit of a concern that some seniors feel like they have to make a decision today. Of course, enrollment doesn't even begin until Nov. 15.

People can go to senior centers, people can call a local number, or go to a local event to get the help they need, ... Because it is clear that some will need expert assistance. We just can't rely on press releases out of Washington to do it.