Agent skill · data analytics · google-deepmind
openfda-database
Query, search, and download data from the openFDA API for drugs, devices, foods, tobacco, cosmetics, animal and veterinary products, substances, and transparency data. Use for FDA adverse events, recalls, labeling, approvals, shortages, 510(k) clearances, NDC lookups, and any FDA safety or regulatory data query across all 28 API endpoints.
Why this skill is useful
Provides specific commands and workflows for querying the openFDA API that the AI wouldn't reliably generate on its own.
What it needs
Requires uv installed locally. Requires open.fda account access. About 5k tokens when loaded. Last updated 2026-07-07. 2,648 stars on the source repository.
What this skill does
openFDA Search and Query Prerequisites 1. uv: Read the uv skill and follow its Setup instructions to ensure uv is installed and on PATH. 2. User Notification: If .licenses/openfdadatabaseLICENSE.txt does not already exist in the workspace root directory then (1) prominently notify the user to check the terms at https://open.fda.gov/apis/ and https://open.fda.gov/license, then (2) create the file recording the notification text and timestamp. 3. .env file: Make sure the .env file exists in your home directory. Create one if it does not exist. 4. FDAAPIKEY (optional but recommended): Raises the daily request limit from 1,000 to 120,000. The skill works without it, but an agent can easily exhaust the keyless limit in a single session. You can register for a free key at https://open.fda.gov/apis/authentication/. You MUST use the safe credentials protocol in the credentials skill to check for and request this key if this skill looks relevant to the user's request. Core Rules Use the Wrapper: ALWAYS execute the provided helper scripts to query the database rather than accessing the database directly. The scripts automatically enforce the required rate limit gracefully. Rate Limiting: Respect openFDA rate limits. Without API key: 240 requests/min, 1,000 requests/day per IP. With API key: 240 requests/min, 120,000 requests/day per key. Always set an API key before running multi-query workflows. Warning: An automated agent can easily exhaust the 1,000-request daily limit in a single research session. Always set an API key before running multi-query workflows. You MUST use the safe credentials protocol in the credentials skill to help the user add FDAAPIKEY to their .env file if this skill looks relevant to the user's request. The script will emit a warning to stderr if no API key is detected. Always Use --output: All subcommands require --output <file> to write results to a file. This prevents large output becoming overwhelming. Use jq or code to read the output file. …
How to use it
Reference it in AdaL, Claude Code, Cursor or any coding agent — nothing to install:
@skills google-deepmind/openfda_database