Bristol Myers Squibb and Pfizer Partner with Mark Cuban to Offer Reduced Eliquis

Bristol Myers Squibb and Pfizer have partnered with Mark Cuban's Cost Plus Drugs to offer Eliquis (apixaban), one of the world's top-selling blood thinners, at substantially reduced out-of-pocket prices for patients. The collaboration marks one of the most significant direct-to-consumer drug pricing initiatives undertaken by major pharmaceutical companies, addressing a persistent criticism that brand-name medications remain financially out of reach for uninsured and underinsured patients who need them most.

Eliquis is a blockbuster cardiovascular drug that generated approximately $11 billion in global sales in 2025, with BMY and PFE splitting royalties and profits under a long-running co-promotion agreement. By offering a reduced-cost pathway through Cost Plus Drugs' transparent cost-plus pricing model, the companies risk cannibalizing some premium-channel revenue but appear to be positioning proactively ahead of potential federal drug pricing legislation — and signaling to investors that they can manage pricing reform without catastrophic margin compression.

The deal tests whether large pharmaceutical companies can voluntarily implement affordability programs without waiting for regulatory mandates. Investors will watch closely whether the reduced-price Eliquis access program materially impacts blended net realized prices across the total payer mix, or represents a narrow program for a subset of cash-pay patients that leaves overall revenue dynamics largely intact. The outcome could set a precedent for how other blockbuster drug manufacturers respond to ongoing political and consumer pressure on pharmaceutical pricing.