The Food and Drug Administration approved Vertex Pharmaceuticals' non-opioid painkiller pill, a new alternative for pain relief that comes without the risk of addiction.  It's a milestone after a long history of unsuccessful efforts to develop painkillers without the destructive dependency of opioids,

A non-opioid pain medication made by Vertex Pharmaceuticals has received approval for adults from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The Food and Drug Administration late Thursday approved a new non-opioid pain pill from Vertex Pharmaceuticals, one of the most closely-watched drugs in all of biotech.Now comes the real test: Will anyone buy it?