Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company enters the online pharmacy sector and launches a new digital marketplace. The company introduces the digital pharmacy to help consumers find medicines for less.
In November, the company unveiled its Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM), which it said allows the company to cut out the “middlemen” and markups in its online pharmacy.
According to the company’s website, the pharmacy will offer medications focused on diabetes, heart health, gastrointestinal issues, mental health, cancer, antibiotics and other areas.
WHY IT MATTERS
According to According to research from the Kaiser Family Foundation, 83% of adults say prescription drug costs are unreasonable. Additionally, 35% of respondents with household incomes of $40,000 or less said they struggle to afford their prescription drugs.
The MCCPDC unveils its new system to reduce drug costs by working as both a PBM and a retailer.
“There are numerous bad actors in the pharmaceutical supply chain preventing patients from getting affordable medicines,” said Alex Oshmyansky, CEO of the MCCPDC, said in a statement. “The only way to ensure affordable prices prevail is through vertical integration.”
THE BIGGER TREND
There are several online drug dealers today. Big Tech has also shown interest in the industry. In 2018, Amazon entered the space after taking over the digital pharmacy PillPack for nearly $1 billion. Amazon later integrated PillPack and launched Amazon Pharmacy, a digital store that allows customers to order and manage their prescription drugs online and have them delivered to their homes.
Investors have taken notice of digital pharmacies and have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into space. Online pharmacy in April Capsule closed a $300 million funding round, taking the company’s overall valuation to $1 billion.
In 2020, Alto, a digital pharmacy and drug delivery company, closed a $250 million Series D funding round led by SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2.
