How to Use the HHS Open Payments MCP in Claude Code

Q: How do I add the HHS Open Payments MCP Server to Claude Code?

Run the command claude mcp add --transport http hhs-open-payments-mcp -- in your terminal. This saves the configuration to your /.claude.json file and connects the tools instantly.

Q: How do I find metadata for a specific dataset year?

You can have the agent call getdataset with the specific dataset identifier. It returns the metadata, including release dates and record counts.

Pipe HHS Open Payments data directly into your terminal scripts and CI/CD pipelines using Claude Code.

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Connect HHS Open Payments MCP to Claude Code

Create your Vinkius account to connect HHS Open Payments to Claude Code and route execution through our secure gateway. The platform manages server hosting, runtime updates, and security layers. Configuration requires no manual server provisioning.

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Setup HHS Open Payments with Claude Code

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Command-Line Compliance Audits via Claude Code

Claude Code executes `query_dataset` to run fast compliance checks directly from your terminal. It lets you query the federal database by piping terminal commands directly to filter transactions. This CLI-first approach means you can script your audits. The MCP Server handles the connection, allowing your command-line agent to spit out clean JSON payloads that you can immediately pipe into grep or jq.

Automate Bulk Data Downloads in the Terminal

Your command-line agent uses `list_datasets` to find and download massive federal updates. It checks available updates and pulls down the exact files you need with `download_dataset`. Because it runs headlessly, you can run these tasks in cron jobs or background terminal sessions. The MCP agent manages the download queue and saves the data directly to your server's storage.

Search Physicians and Hospitals via CLI

Claude Code runs `search_physicians` to look up doctor profiles instantly from your shell prompt. It also uses `search_hospitals` to verify hospital ties during an active investigation. It extracts the unique IDs needed for deeper queries without making you click through slow government web portals. It's a direct line to the federal database, built for engineers who live in tmux and vim.

Setup guide

Set up HHS Open Payments MCP in Claude Code

Prerequisites

Claude Code CLI installed (npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code)
Active Vinkius subscription with a valid endpoint token

1

Run the add command

Open your terminal and run the command shown on the right. Replace [YOUR_TOKEN_HERE] with your endpoint token from cloud.vinkius.com. Use --scope user to make it available across all projects.
2

Verify the connection

Start a Claude Code session and type /mcp to list connected servers. You should see hhs-open-payments-mcp with a green status indicator.
3

Start using tools

Ask Claude Code something like "Check my latest HHS Open Payments transactions." It will automatically discover and invoke the available HHS Open Payments tools.

Terminal

claude mcp add --transport http hhs-open-payments-mcp https://edge.vinkius.com/[YOUR_TOKEN_HERE]/mcp

Get your connection token →

Prerequisites

Claude Code CLI installed
Active Vinkius subscription with a valid endpoint token

1

Open the config file

Create or edit .mcp.json in your project root for project-level scope, or ~/.claude.json for user-level scope.
2

Add the HHS Open Payments MCP

Paste the JSON snippet shown on the right into the mcpServers object. Replace [YOUR_TOKEN_HERE] with your endpoint token from cloud.vinkius.com.
3

Restart Claude Code

Start a new Claude Code session. Type /mcp to confirm the server is connected. The tools will be automatically available in your conversation.

.mcp.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "hhs-open-payments-mcp": {
      "type": "url",
      "url": "https://edge.vinkius.com/[YOUR_TOKEN_HERE]/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Get your connection token →

Independent Platform Disclaimer: Vinkius is an independent platform and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, sponsored by, verified by, or otherwise authorized by HHS Open Payments. All third-party trademarks, logos, and brand names are the property of their respective owners. Their use on this website is strictly for informational purposes to identify service compatibility and interoperability.

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Common questions about HHS Open Payments MCP in Claude Code

Run the command `claude mcp add --transport http hhs-open-payments-mcp -- ` in your terminal. This saves the configuration to your `~/.claude.json` file and connects the tools instantly.

Absolutely. You can tell Claude Code to query the database using `query_dataset` and pipe the resulting JSON to tools like jq or redirect it to a local file.

Authentication is managed entirely by Vinkius. Once you add the MCP config to your CLI, you only need one endpoint token to securely access all six tools.

You can have the agent call `get_dataset` with the specific dataset identifier. It returns the metadata, including release dates and record counts.

All requests are routed through a secure, isolated V8 sandbox on Vinkius. Your local terminal environment only receives the final output, and no credentials or query parameters are cached on public servers.

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