The news: Marc Cuban Cost Plus Drug (MCCPDC) online pharmacy founder Mark Cuban wants the Trump administration to waive generic drug regulatory approval fees, the entrepreneur told Reuters.

• Cost Plus would start manufacturing some generic drugs in the US if the FDA drops the user fee, listed at $358,247 for 2026, per the FDA’s website.
• Cuban launched MCCPDC in 2022 specifically to sell generic drugs. It charges the drug price (negotiated directly with generic drugmakers) plus a fixed 15% markup fee, and $5 shipping and $3 pharmacy handling fees.
• While Cuban didn’t specify drug names, he indicated Cost Plus generic manufacturing would focus on more expensive generics that cost “$100 or more" which they could manufacture in the US and sell at a lower price.
• In October, Cuban announced Cost Plus will participate in the TrumpRx direct-to-consumer prescription drug website portal set to launch in January.

Why it matters: US consumers use far more generic drugs than brand-name drugs, but some are still expensive—especially for smaller patient populations.

• 90% of prescriptions filled in the US are generic, according to the Association of Accessible Medicines.
• Limited competition for a smaller patient base, drug shortages, and pharmacy benefit manager and insurer opaque pricing practices can result in higher generic prices.
• Expensive generics include rare disease specialty drugs like trientine to treat Wilson’s disease which costs about $700 to $900 per month, per GoodRx data.
• More US generic competition could lead to lower prices, but generic leaders like Sandoz don't plan to start manufacturing in the US because low margins prohibit building expensive US manufacturing plants—unless new tax incentives or other changes are made.

Implications for consumers and pharma: Cuban’s push into US manufacturing could help lower prices for some high-cost generic drugs by adding competition where little currently exists. But the economics of generics mean Cost Plus would only be able to target a narrow set of drugs. The bigger impact if the FDA decides to drop user fees is the reduced barrier to US manufacturing, which could encourage more manufacturers to produce generics domestically. Additional incentives like tax breaks could amplify the effect, making broader price relief more likely than what Cost Plus could achieve alone.

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