Biotechnology industry advocates didn't wait for election day to rehearse arguments against the broad policy changes they expect the Barack Obama administration to propose.

Obama's victory, and the Democratic party's commanding control of Congress, are expected to put tough pressure on drug prices as the new president tries to realize his campaign vision of expanded health care coverage for Americans at substantially lower cost. The new regime could also bring policy reversals at the Food and Drug Administration, an agency that became a political battleground during the Bush administration.

But James Greenwood, president of the Biotechnology Industry Organization, said Obama's management of the continuing financial crisis will be the most important influence on the fate of biotech companies coping with tight credit markets and risk-averse investors.