Chart assignment
Charts to read and discuss
Read each chart, then answer its questions. Every chart shows its source and date; open it for a table of the numbers and the data to download.
Chart 1 of 1 · Food and drug safety
How many drug recalls are there each year?
The interactive chart needs JavaScript. The numbers are on the chart's page.
The FDA classified 327 drug recalls in 2025, and between about 260 and 390 each year from 2013 to 2025. Most are Class II, which could cause temporary or minor harm; fewer are Class I, the most serious kind, which could cause serious harm or death. A recall counts once however many products, strengths or lots it covers, in the year FDA first listed it in its weekly Enforcement Report.
Questions to discuss
- In one sentence of your own, what does this chart show?
- Find the biggest change or difference in the chart. What might explain it?
- Who collected these numbers, and how recent are they? What else would you want to know before drawing a conclusion?
Source: U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Enforcement Reports (openFDA drug recall data) (Public domain (U.S. government work); source U.S. Food and Drug Administration, openFDA) · Data as of Dec 31, 2025
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