Basis of Presentation and Accounting Policies - Schedule of new accounting pronouncements and changes in accounting principles (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2018	Mar. 31, 2017
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Product revenues, net	$ 637,729	$ 480,622
Cost of sales	71,613	46,988
Income from operations	128,901	270,842
Net income attributable to Vertex	$ 210,263	$ 247,756
Basic (in dollars per share)	$ 0.83	$ 1.01
Diluted (in dollars per share)	$ 0.81	$ 0.99
Calculated under Revenue Guidance in Effect before Topic 606
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Product revenues, net	$ 633,064
Cost of sales	70,081
Income from operations	125,768
Net income attributable to Vertex	$ 207,130
Basic (in dollars per share)	$ 0.82
Diluted (in dollars per share)	$ 0.80
Difference between Revenue Guidance in Effect before and after Topic 606 | Accounting Standards Update 2014-09
Revenue, Initial Application Period Cumulative Effect Transition [Line Items]
Product revenues, net	$ 4,665
Cost of sales	1,532
Income from operations	3,133
Net income attributable to Vertex	$ 3,133
Basic (in dollars per share)	$ 0.01
Diluted (in dollars per share)	$ 0.01