Should Mark Cuban Make CVS, Walgreens And Amazon Worry?

A billionaire sports team owner wants to cut the cost of American prescriptions. Should the big drug chains check their pulses?

Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks and a long-time Shark Tank investor, in January launched his price-popping discount e-pharmacy, Mark Cuban CostPlus Drug Co. (Yeah, you need a glass of water to swallow that name, so let’s refer to it as CostPlus Drug.)

At the time, news outlets like The Street suggested Cuban was taking on the retail heavies – CVS, Walgreens WBA -0.4%, Rite Aid RAD +5.3% and even newbie Amazon Pharmacy. His goal: to offer lower-priced generic drugs and “shield consumers from inflated drug prices,” according to a company statement. (CostPlus’s website is operated by online healthcare company Truepill.)

New Age In Medicine: The Pluses And Minuses Of Rx
Now, 10 months later, we’ve had time to examine the extent to which Cuban’s low-priced option is affecting sales at big retail pharma, and across the industry. He is, after all, competing not only with retailers, but also with price-cutters, such as Amazon Pharmacy and Good Rx.

Here is a breakdown of how these drug-store alternatives make a buck, and save a buck.

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