After decades of research, Vertex Pharmaceuticals now has an approved pain medication. Can one of the world’s most powerful biotechs contend with a healthcare system that’s long favored opioids?

The prescription pills, sold under the brand name Journavx and made by Vertex Pharmaceuticals, are taken twice a day and represent the first new class of pain medications in 20 years—and the first non-opioid painkiller since that class first appeared on the market in the 1980s.