The billionaire Mark Cuban has just launched the Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company, which is a generic drug company that will aim to offer low-cost versions of high-cost generic drugs and pledges to “provide radical transparency in how we price our drugs.”
Cuban’s company is going to publish the costs to manufacture, distribute and market its drugs to pharmacies.
“”We add a flat 15% margin to get our wholesale prices. This makes sure we remain viable and profitable. There are no hidden costs, no middlemen, no rebates only available to insurance companies. Everybody gets the same low price for every drug we make,” states the website.
Cost Plus is already offering their first drug, the anti-parasitic drug albendazole. By the end of 2021, the company’s goal is to introduce over 100 drugs, and it wants to build a pharmaceutical factory in Dallas, Texas by 2022.
“Our goal is that everyone should be able to afford their medicine,” the company stated. “Everyone should know what it cost to make their medicine. Everyone should feel the price they paid for their medicine was fair.”
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Cuban, who is also the owner of the Dallas Mavericks, could not be more excited for this endeavor
“It’s ridiculous what the pricing for generic drugs is. Period end of story,” Cuban told Forbes, going on to confess that he has at least one ulterior motive. “I put my name on it because I wanted to show that capitalism can be compassionate and to send the message I am all in.”
Cuban signed on after CEO Alex Oshmyansky reached out to him about the idea for this company.
“The people getting price-gouged are people who are living in extreme poverty,” Oshmyansky said. “If you get it, and you treat it right away, it’s not a big deal. But if it’s left to fester, it can cause cognitive defects and neurological problems.” He also added that in his career he’s “had patients have serious injuries from the high cost of drugs, which should have been very cheap. I’ve been angry about it for a long time.”
Oshmyansky went on to add that Cuban has played a huge role in getting this off the ground.
“From his public persona, I primarily thought of Mark as a sports, media personality. But he is deeply, deeply knowledgeable about the pharmaceutical industry and pharma pricing,” Oshmyansky said. “He’s been directly involved in shaping the strategic direction of the company.”
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