VRTX · Earnings call · 2026Q3T · Full report

JOURNAVX Demand and Access

VERTEX PHARMACEUTICALS INC / MA · 2026-11-02 · Importance 52 · Surprise 56

JOURNAVX prescriptions exceeded 750,000 in the third quarter, up more than 40% sequentially, and prescriptions were split roughly evenly between hospital and retail channels. More than 1.6 million U.S. patients had been treated, and management said the brand was the leading prescribed branded oral analgesic in the U.S. The patient support program will remain in place until mid-2027 to serve patients whose plans do not yet cover the drug; approximately 82% of managed lives were covered, including broad Medicare Part D access secured in July.

Key facts

• After the JOURNAVX patient support program ends in mid-2027, Vertex expects gross-to-net to stabilize at 50%-60%.
• Vertex kept the JOURNAVX patient support program in place and extended it into 2027, planning to sunset it in the middle of 2027.
• For JOURNAVX, Q3 2026 prescriptions exceeded 750,000, up more than 40% sequentially from Q2 2026; prescriptions were split roughly 50/50 between hospital and retail channels.
• A JOURNAVX-inclusive pain-management regimen was associated with 80% freedom from opioid use after total knee replacement in a recently published paper.
• Vertex reported approximately 82% of managed lives covered for JOURNAVX and planned to keep its patient support program active until mid-2027.
• JOURNAVX became the number one prescribed branded oral analgesic in the U.S.; more than 1.6 million U.S. patients had been treated.