API referenceDrugs
Search drugs across RxNorm and NDC
GET /v1/drugs/search
GET https://api.healthcare.dev/v1/drugs/searchSearches RxNorm concepts and FDA NDC products together, ranked by match_score across both (RxNorm first on ties); limit applies to each source.
Requires an API key: Authorization: Bearer hdev_live_.... See Authentication.
Query parameters
| Name | Type | Required | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
q | string | yes | Search text (fuzzy) | diabetes |
limit | integer | no | Page size (max 100) | 25 |
view | "compact" | "full" | no | compact returns only the fields an agent usually needs (fewer tokens); full (default) returns every field | compact |
fields | string | no | Comma-separated record fields to return, e.g. code,display,billable | code,display,billable |
Examples
curl
curl "https://api.healthcare.dev/v1/drugs/search?q=diabetes&limit=25" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $HDEV_API_KEY"TypeScript
const res = await fetch("https://api.healthcare.dev/v1/drugs/search?q=diabetes&limit=25", {
headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.HDEV_API_KEY}` },
});
const { data, meta } = await res.json();Python
import os
import requests
res = requests.get("https://api.healthcare.dev/v1/drugs/search?q=diabetes&limit=25", headers={"Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['HDEV_API_KEY']}"})
body = res.json()Try it
Response
Hits
{
"data": [
{
"type": "rxnorm",
"id": "861007",
"name": "metformin hydrochloride 500 MG Oral Tablet",
"tty": "SCD",
"labeler": null
}
],
"meta": {
"source": "cms-icd10",
"data_version": "2026.1",
"retrieved_at": "2026-10-24T12:00:00Z",
"license": "Public domain (CMS). Reference data, not medical advice."
},
"links": {
"self": "/v1/drugs/search?q=diabetes&limit=25",
"next": "/v1/drugs/search?q=diabetes&limit=25&cursor=eyJrIjoiRTExLjkifQ"
}
}Fields
| Field | Type | Always present | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
type | "rxnorm" | "ndc" | yes | |
id | string | yes | RxCUI or product NDC |
name | string | yes | |
tty | string | null | yes | RxNorm term type (rxnorm hits) |
labeler | string | null | yes | Labeler (ndc hits) |
match_score | number | yes | How well this result matches the query: 1 exact code or id, 0.9 code prefix, 0.5 to 0.9 every query word in the text (higher is closer), under 0.5 a fuzzy (typo-tolerant) match. Below 0.5, check the result before relying on it. |
Errors
Errors are application/problem+json (RFC 9457). Branch on type, not on title. See Errors.
| Status | type | When |
|---|---|---|
| 400 | invalid-request | A parameter or the body failed validation; errors lists each field. |
| 401 | unauthorized | Missing, malformed or revoked API key. |
| 404 | not-found | No record with that id (retired records are still returned). |
| 429 | rate-limited / quota-exceeded | Too many requests per second (retry after Retry-After), or the monthly quota is used up. |
| 503 | dataset-unavailable / unavailable | The dataset has no published version yet, or the service is degraded. |