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sapientsai

OpenFDA MCP Server

by sapientsai

OpenFDA MCP Server

An MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that provides access to U.S. FDA public datasets including drugs, medical devices, adverse events, recalls, and more.

Features

  • 10 FDA Tools: Query drug and device databases through a standardized MCP interface

  • Drug Tools: Adverse events (FAERS), labels, NDC directory, recalls, Drugs@FDA, shortages

  • Device Tools: 510(k) clearances, classifications, adverse events (MDR), recalls

  • Individual Record Lookup: Retrieve specific reports by ID (safety report ID, set ID, MDR report number)

  • Advanced Filtering: Filter drug labels by boxed warnings, request specific label sections

  • Rate Limit Aware: Supports authenticated requests for higher rate limits (120k/hour vs 1k/hour)

  • TypeScript: Fully typed with Zod schema validation

Related MCP server: Healthcare MCP Server

Installation

# Install globally
npm install -g openfda-mcp-server

# Or use with npx
npx openfda-mcp-server

Configuration

Claude Desktop

Add to your Claude Desktop configuration (~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json on macOS):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "openfda": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "openfda-mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "OPENFDA_API_KEY": "your-api-key-optional"
      }
    }
  }
}

Environment Variables

Variable

Description

Default

OPENFDA_API_KEY

FDA API key for higher rate limits

None (uses public limits)

Get a free API key at: https://open.fda.gov/apis/authentication/

Available Tools

Drug Tools

Tool

Description

search_drug_adverse_events

Search FAERS for drug safety reports. Retrieve specific report by safetyReportId.

search_drug_labels

Search drug labeling/prescribing info. Get by setId, filter by hasBoxedWarning, select sections.

search_drug_ndc

Search the National Drug Code directory

search_drug_recalls

Search drug recall enforcement reports

search_drugs_at_fda

Search approved drug applications

search_drug_shortages

Search current and resolved drug shortages

Device Tools

Tool

Description

search_device_510k

Search 510(k) premarket notifications

search_device_classifications

Search device classification database

search_device_adverse_events

Search MDR adverse event reports. Retrieve specific report by reportNumber.

search_device_recalls

Search device recall enforcement reports

Tool Parameters

search_drug_labels

Parameter

Type

Description

setId

string

Retrieve a specific label by its unique set_id

drugName

string

Drug brand or generic name

indication

string

Medical indication or use case

activeIngredient

string

Active ingredient/substance name

route

string

Route of administration (e.g., 'oral', 'intravenous')

hasBoxedWarning

boolean

Filter for drugs with boxed warnings (most serious warnings)

sections

string[]

Specific label sections to return (see below)

limit

number

Maximum results (1-100)

skip

number

Number of results to skip for pagination

Available sections: indications_and_usage, dosage_and_administration, contraindications, warnings, warnings_and_cautions, adverse_reactions, drug_interactions, clinical_pharmacology, mechanism_of_action, pharmacokinetics, overdosage, description, how_supplied, storage_and_handling, boxed_warning

search_drug_adverse_events

Parameter

Type

Description

safetyReportId

string

Retrieve a specific FAERS report by its 8-digit ID

drugName

string

Drug or product name to search

reaction

string

Adverse reaction (e.g., 'headache', 'nausea')

manufacturer

string

Drug manufacturer name

serious

boolean

Filter for serious adverse events only

dateFrom

string

Start date (YYYY-MM-DD)

dateTo

string

End date (YYYY-MM-DD)

limit

number

Maximum results (1-100)

skip

number

Number of results to skip for pagination

search_device_adverse_events

Parameter

Type

Description

reportNumber

string

Retrieve a specific MDR report by report number

deviceName

string

Device generic name

brandName

string

Device brand name

manufacturerName

string

Device manufacturer name

eventType

string

Type: 'Injury', 'Malfunction', 'Death', 'Other'

dateFrom

string

Start date (YYYY-MM-DD)

dateTo

string

End date (YYYY-MM-DD)

limit

number

Maximum results (1-100)

skip

number

Number of results to skip for pagination

Usage Examples

Search for drug adverse events

Find adverse events for aspirin in the last year that were serious

Get a specific adverse event report

Retrieve FAERS report with safety report ID 10003641

Search for drugs with boxed warnings

Find all drugs with boxed warnings related to cardiovascular risks

Get specific label sections

Get the boxed_warning and contraindications sections for warfarin

Search for drug recalls

Search for Class I drug recalls from Pfizer

Search for device clearances

Find 510(k) clearances for cardiac pacemakers

Get a specific device adverse event report

Retrieve MDR report number 2649622-2020-08294

Search for device adverse events

Search device adverse events for insulin pumps that resulted in injury

CLI Usage

# Start with stdio transport (default)
openfda-mcp-server

# Start with HTTP transport
openfda-mcp-server --transport http --port 3000

Docker

Quick Start

# Build and run with docker-compose
docker-compose up -d

# Or build manually
docker build -t openfda-mcp-server .
docker run -p 3000:3000 -e OPENFDA_API_KEY=your-key openfda-mcp-server

Docker Compose

services:
  openfda-mcp:
    image: openfda-mcp-server:latest
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"
    environment:
      - OPENFDA_API_KEY=${OPENFDA_API_KEY:-}

Environment Variables

Pass environment variables to the container:

docker run -p 3000:3000 \
  -e OPENFDA_API_KEY=your-api-key \
  -e DEBUG=openfda-mcp:* \
  openfda-mcp-server

Development

# Install dependencies
pnpm install

# Run in development mode
pnpm dev

# Test locally
pnpm serve:test

# Run full validation (format, lint, test, build)
pnpm validate

# Build for production
pnpm build

Programmatic Usage

import { createOpenFDAServer, handleSearchDrugAdverseEvents, handleSearchDrugLabels } from "openfda-mcp-server/lib"

// Create a custom server
const server = createOpenFDAServer({
  name: "my-fda-server",
  version: "1.0.0",
})

// Search for adverse events
const adverseEvents = await handleSearchDrugAdverseEvents({
  drugName: "aspirin",
  serious: true,
  limit: 10,
})

// Get a specific adverse event by ID
const specificReport = await handleSearchDrugAdverseEvents({
  safetyReportId: "10003641",
})

// Search for drugs with boxed warnings
const boxedWarningDrugs = await handleSearchDrugLabels({
  hasBoxedWarning: true,
  limit: 10,
})

// Get specific sections of a drug label
const warfarinLabel = await handleSearchDrugLabels({
  setId: "0cbce382-9c88-4f58-ae0f-532a841e8f95",
  sections: ["boxed_warning", "contraindications", "adverse_reactions"],
})

API Rate Limits

Authentication

Per Minute

Per Hour

Without API Key

40

1,000

With API Key

240

120,000

License

MIT

Acknowledgments


Sponsored by SapientsAI — Building agentic AI for businesses

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