Epic is partnering with Amazon Pharmacy, Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs, Costco and Eli Lilly’s LillyDirect to develop a tool that allows clinicians and patients to compare prescription drug prices.
Through the Prescription Marketplace, scheduled to launch next summer, clinicians and patients in health systems using Epic will compare drug costs at different pharmacies (patient insurance prices and pharmacy cash prices) before the prescription is sent. Depending on the drug, the patient’s insurance plan and the pharmacy, paying with cash can sometimes cost less, Epic executives said in a news release.
Any pharmacy will be able to share its cash prices with health systems using Epic, the company said.
Epic brings pharmacy price shopping directly into the doctor’s office and prescription workflow, potentially eliminating the need for patients to find out after leaving the doctor’s office that their prescription is cheaper elsewhere or without insurance.
More than 40% of American adults say they don’t take their medications as prescribed because of cost, according to a KFF survey. Epic currently offers a real-time prescription benefits feature in its electronic health record (EHR) platform that shows doctors what the patient will pay under their insurance, as well as generic alternatives. Epic claims this feature has helped patients save more than $250 million in 2025.
Amazon Pharmacy has been working with Epic since early 2025 to help shape the development of the prescription drug market. “Obtaining medications should be simple, transparent and convenient,” said Tanvi Patel, vice president and general manager of Amazon Pharmacy. “Customers deserve to know how much their medications will cost, choose whether to use insurance or pay cash, and get their prescriptions in the way that suits them, whether delivered to their door or picked up at an Amazon Pharmacy kiosk, where available. »
Mark Cuban, co-founder of Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs, said the prescription drug marketplace would provide transparency for patients. “If a person’s insurance says a prescription costs $500 but they can buy the exact same drug for $100 on CostPlusDrugs.com, they should know that before leaving the doctor’s office,” Cuban said in a statement.
“Having integrated access to clear, transparent pricing empowers patients and prescribers to make better decisions, reduce abandonment at the pharmacy counter and close gaps in care,” Ricky Li, Costco assistant vice president, said in a statement.
“Patients should not have to navigate a complex healthcare system alone to understand their options for filling a prescription,” said Jen Mazur, managing director of US LillyDirect at Eli Lilly and Company. “Through LillyDirect, we are working to make access to prescribed medications simpler, more transparent and more convenient. Giving patients and their healthcare providers greater visibility into pharmacy options and costs at the point of care is another important step toward reducing friction in the healthcare experience.”
Drugmakers, retailers and pharmacies are moving toward greater price transparency and more direct-to-consumer models. Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs was officially launched in January 2022 as an online pharmacy providing affordable prescription medications through transparent pricing.
Amazon has leveraged its reach among U.S. consumers to expand its online pharmacy business, leveraging several savings programs such as RxPass and Prime Rx.
Eli Lilly and Company deployed LillyDirect in early 2024 as an end-to-end portal for patients to access telehealth consultations and order therapies directly from the manufacturer.
Trump Rx launched in February as a direct-to-consumer portal that offers pharmaceutical coupons and directs patients to drugmakers’ websites, where they can buy certain brand-name drugs at government-negotiated prices.
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