5 Healthcare Fixes Mark Cuban Says Could Lower Prescription Costs
Money expert and billionaire Mark Cuban has always been an innovator and a disruptor. Many Americans would argue one of the biggest infrastructures that could use a little disruption in 2026 would be the current healthcare system. With his Cost Plus Drug Company, Cuban is looking to shake up the multibillion-dollar pharmacy industry by lowering healthcare costs for all.
It's coming at an opportune time following the passage of the Trump administration's One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), which included significant changes to Medicaid and Affordable Care Act programs, along with other healthcare-related provisions. Cuban doesn't believe it has to be this way, though, and is making waves with a surprisingly simple approach to fixing America's healthcare mess.
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Here's how Cuban wants to reshape healthcare and save you money.
1. Direct-to-Consumer: Cut Out the Middlemen
Cuban's Cost Plus Drugs company aimed at a basic problem: Why do medications cost so much?
His solution is simple -- get rid of the middlemen. By bypassing traditional pharmacy benefit managers like CVS Caremark and Express Scripts, his company offers drugs at dramatically lower prices so people can afford the medications they need to stay healthy.
The savings with Cost Plus Drugs begin with its delivery model, which is direct-to-consumer. The process begins with the company buying drugs directly from manufacturers and then reselling them to the public with a markup of no more than 15%, plus a pharmacy service fee. According to Cuban, this allows his company to offer "the lowest prices on meds anywhere."
2. Discussions With CMS: Make Everything Transparent
"The smartest thing we did was publish our entire price list because that allowed any company, any sponsor, CMS, researchers to compare our prices to what others were already paying," Cuban said.
While some companies hide their real costs behind layers of complexity, Cost Plus Drugs puts everything out in the open. Want to know exactly what you'll pay? Just check the website.
By discussing drug costs openly with as important a pricing mechanism as Medicare, Cuban is both bringing attention to the issue and giving notice that he's going to use leverage to pull down healthcare costs. Of course, he is also publicizing his own for-profit business, but the net effect could be beneficial for all.
3. Keep It Simple: What You See Is What You Get
For his own employees, Cuban is practicing what he preaches. No deductibles. No pre-authorizations. No claim denials. "You see the doctor, pay them and that's it. No fuss, no muss," Cuban said. It's simple -- and even better, it works.
However, to truly save customers more money, Cuban has expressed his desire to expand access to branded versions of drugs, Forbes reported. If Cuban and Cost Plus Drugs can find a way to sell name-brand drugs at a reduced rate, customers could end up saving much more.
4. Cost Plus Drugs: Pay Upfront
Cuban's companies pay hospitals upfront at Medicare rates or lower. This eliminates the financial risk for hospitals (who often eat the cost of unpaid deductibles) and cuts out a lot of paperwork. Less hassle means lower costs for everyone.
No one man or company can lower the cost of all drugs for all people. But Cuban's Cost Plus Drugs is making strides. Simply by publicizing the high cost of drugs, Cuban is putting pressure on providers to make them more affordable.
5. Access and Affordability: Make the System Work for People
Having a system that works for the customer rather than the corporation may seem unlikely at this point, but Cuban's showing that healthcare doesn't have to be a pile of insurance forms and surprise bills. By publishing all his contracts and pricing, he's creating a blueprint other businesses can follow. It turns out making healthcare affordable isn't rocket science -- it just needs someone willing to cut through the complexity.
In fact, Cost Plus Drugs is working to broaden access to its mail-order drugs by establishing affiliated networks of both retail grocery stores and independent pharmacists. This allows more Americans, particularly those in rural areas, to gain access to lower-cost drugs, either via the U.S. mail or by picking up their prescriptions at local storefronts.
As Cuban points out, most of these ideas aren't new or revolutionary. They're just common-sense approaches that put people before profits.
Laura Beck and John Csiszar contributed to the reporting for this article.
This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.