Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Co. Will Sell Branded Janssen, IBSA Drugs

Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Co., the wholesale, direct-to-consumer drug manufacturer and pharmacy launched by the eponymous entrepreneur, will sell brand-name diabetes drugs from Janssen, a division of Johnson & Johnson. Cuban also says that the company will soon sell hypothyroidism treatment Tirosint (levothyroxine). The drugs are the first brand-name products to be sold by the company, which has previously focused exclusively on generics; Cuban says that the company plans to sell whatever brand-name drugs that it can, depending on drugmakers’ interest. 

Invokana (canagliflozin), Invokamet (canagliflozin-metformin HCl) and Invokamet XR (canagliflozin-metformin HCl) are now available from the startup, according to an April 3 tweet. Invokana will cost $243.90 for a 30-day supply, while Invokamet and Invokamet XR will each cost $244.20 for a 60-day supply. During a March 23 panel on prescription drug pricing and policy convened by Vanderbilt University, Cuban said that he doesn’t expect to stop at offering just a few brand-name drugs.