Breaking Down Barriers: Mark Cuban Is Making Prescription Drugs More Affordable

Patients deserve to know what their prescription medications cost. There's a significant lack of transparency regarding prescription drugs in the U.S. Launched in 2022, Mark Cuban’s Cost Plus Drug Company is on a major mission to help solve this problem by committing to offering medications at the lowest possible price. They achieve this by cutting out the middlemen and using simple, upfront pricing. There are no hidden fees, no surprises, just a focus on reliable, transparent pricing. Most drugs available currently are generics, but more are being added all the time.

The mission is to improve public health, and that starts with providing access to medication at affordable prices. This is directly linked to taking medication as prescribed, without resorting to nonadherence due to high and unaffordable costs. While medication nonadherence occurs for other reasons, such as fear of side effects, addressing the cost factor head-on is a noble cause. Cuban and his partners started this company as an effort to disrupt the drug industry and do their best to end ridiculous drug prices.

In a country that pays 2-3 times more than any other nation for prescription medications, this is much needed! Those in disadvantaged populations suffer the most due to decreased access and affordability. Perhaps this is the start of making it easier for people who need life-saving medications to obtain them without needing to be millionaires. Or without being reliant on their insurance company, which may or may not decide to cover a drug depending on their policy. I'm looking forward to seeing more medications added, particularly brand-name and specialty medications for chronic conditions.

Transparency in healthcare is becoming, and should be, the standard rather than the exception and this applies to the pharmaceutical branch of healthcare, too. Showing up at the pharmacy only to be met with a hefty bill to pay is an experience most people dread. Accountability, trust, and transparency will lead to improved patient outcomes. Medication price transparency allows patients to make informed decisions about their healthcare. When patients have access to clear information about treatment options, risks, and costs, they can actively participate in their healthcare decisions and feel empowered by their choices. It will also improve the trust factor between patients and healthcare providers, all of which comes down to transparent communication and not actively attempting to hide associated costs. These factors all have a significant outcome on a patient's health and wellness experience.

So, how does Mark Cuban’s Cost Plus Drug Company work? As Cuban explained on “The Daily Show” with Jon Stewart (where I first discovered the company), the markup is a standard 15% for each drug, plus a shipping fee and a fee for a pharmacist to review the prescription. It's currently a mail-order company, but that could change in the future as they continue to work with more pharmacies. Link to the full interview with Jon Stewart here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayhRmnFlSkE (go to the 17:00 mark if you want to narrow it down to the topic of medication.)

From the company’s FAQs section, here’s a rundown of the process:

1. Find your medication in their online store by searching, browsing alphabetically, or by medical condition.

2. Once you’ve found your medication, sign up for an account. https://costplusdrugs.com/create-account/

3. Reach out to your doctor or provider using the provided instructions to receive prescriptions.

4. Once a prescription is received from your doctor, you’ll be notified to checkout.

5. Your medications are delivered straight to your door in just a few days.

   
   

This process seems relatively straight forward and I was impressed to see the amount of information provided in the FAQs section of the website. Customers will certainly have questions, especially first time ones, but the designers, and team did a great job of addressing any burning question that may come up from a user.

So why are the drugs so cheap? Well, they essentially work to cut out the pharmacy middlemen and negotiate directly with manufacturers to get the best prices possible. PBMs, or pharmacy benefit managers (the middlemen), have come under increased scrutiny for contributing to the inflation and lack of transparency surrounding prescription medications and associated providers.

Several insurers are tied to the company, with more being added in the future. Hopefully, more insurers will include Mark Cuban’s Cost Plus Drug Company as an in-network provider option. A patient does not need to have insurance to sign up for Cost Plus—this is a point that really stood out! Any patient who needs medication can shop at the online store and save money. I look forward to seeing what comes next with this company and kudos to Mark Cuban for moving forward with this much needed initiative. I'm really curious to learn more about what the customer experience has been like for those who've shopped and ordered their medications on the website.

Here's a link, if you'd like to check it out: https://costplusdrugs.com/