California’s biotechnology industry is growing steadily, but the looming possibility of increased government oversight could stifle new drug development, according to an industry-supported report set for release today, the Associated Press reports.
The California Healthcare Institute reported that the state’s biotech businesses and research institutions generated $73 billion in revenue in 2006, up nearly 20 percent from the previous year.
California companies, including medical device and diagnostics firms, brought in just over 40 percent of the $7.4 billion in biotech venture capital , about three times as much as Massachusetts, the state’s nearest competitor. And the National Institutes of Health bestowed $3.3 billion in grants on California researchers, significantly more than any other state, the report says.
The state’s 2,700 firms employed nearly 270,000 workers, more than both the aerospace and movie businesses, the report says. California biotech workers in the state pulled down an average salary of $71,300.
However, a recession could drag down biotech like any other industry, said David Gollaher, the institute’s chief executive and co-author of the report. But just one new blockbuster biological drug that strikes a blow against an intractable disease like cancer, diabetes or Alzheimer’s would shield the sector from any economic downturn, he predicted.
