Low cost, life saving prescriptions now available in NC
After a month-long delay, Cost Plus Drug Company can finally ship to people in North Carolina. Until now, The Tar Heel State was the only state in the country where the online prescription drug provider couldn’t do business.
Last month, 5 On Your Side reported about that discrepancy and company founder Mark Cuban’s comment that the state has "lots of draconian rules that is costing voters a lot of money."
Cost Plus Drug Company, owned by the billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks and "Shark Tank" host, offers about 100 popular generic drugs at massive discounts. In most cases, the drugs are even cheaper than co-pays under the best insurance plans.
"Not only is it a game changer, it could be a life saver for many people without insurance," says Greenville resident Chad Hedgepeth. He’s a stage four gastrointestinal cancer survivor who initially tried to sign up for Cost Plus Drugs when it launched. He welcomes news that the company can finally do business in North Carolina. "I’ve been waiting for this day," he said.
The company offers a cancer drug called Imatnib. It’s one of the drugs 5 on Your Side singled out in earlier report to highlight the incredible savings.
Hedgepeth did his own math on a drug he’ll have to take every day for the rest of his life. "The pharmacy cash price at a national chain is $65,276 per year. Through Mark Cuban’s Cost Plus pharmacy that price goes down to $664.80," he said.
When the company launched, Cuban went to Twitter and called out North Carolina laws. Turns out, the issue wasn’t the laws. It was the pharmacy Cost Plus uses to fill prescriptions.
Five on Your Side obtained a new signed consent order from the North Carolina Pharmacy Board. It shows a pharmacy called TruePill, which Cuban’s company uses, had faulty applications with the state for four years. The applications were inaccurate or incomplete when it came to company leadership, mergers and connections to other online pharmacies.
In November, TruePill’s own attorneys realized the problem and agreed to immediately stop shipping here until a new permit. That happened March 8 when the Pharmacy Board and the company agreed to the consent order. When we first asked the board about the Cost Plus permit status last month, it wasn’t aware of the connection between the two companies.
Now that the issue is fixed, patients like Hedgepeth and others can focus on their health without the added weight of skyrocketing drug prices. "To add on the stress of trying to find medication at a reasonable price, that shouldn’t be happening here in the most, you know, the richest country in the world," Hedgepeth said.
He talked to his at doctors at Dukeon Thursday and they submitted his prescriptions to Cost Plus Drugs. He hopes to get his first, cheaper doses in a couple of weeks.
Those who plan to try out Cost Plus Drugs should know that the company doesn’t deal with insurance. It’s cash only. People should contact their insurance providers to see if any out-of-pocket expenses for the drugs can be used to draw down your insurance deductible.
