Lately, one of America's leading pharmaceutical companies can't catch a break from Wall Street. Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: VRTX) are down about 9% from a peak the stock set in November,

Despite high demand for an option like Journavx, doctors fear the drug’s price could be a hangup for insurers and limit patients’ ability to access it.

The drug, Journavx by Vertex Pharmaceuticals, blocks pain signals to the brain, making it nonaddictive. The Food and Drug Administration approved a new medication Thursday to treat pain from an injury or surgery. It is expensive, with a list price of $15.50 per pill. But unlike opioid pain medicines, it cannot become addictive.

The drug, suzetrigine, will be sold under the brand name Journavx and is the first new class of pain medicine approved in more than 20 years.