CDC has not received through its normal channels the formal Epi-Aid request described by Reuters. CDC will not submit to political blackmail that conditions critical public health assistance. The people of Pennsylvania should never be used as leverage in a political dispute over how deaths are classified. Federal outbreak assistance and national mortality reporting are separate processes. Pennsylvania may classify deaths as “measles-associated” under its state surveillance definition, but CDC is working with the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists to establish a standardized definition for measles deaths to ensure consistent reporting across jurisdictions. In the interim, CDC will apply the same national standard to every state and report any measles-caused deaths when the National Center for Health Statistics identifies measles as the underlying cause based on death record information submitted by the states. CDC will not allow Governor Shapiro to politicize this process. We owe the American people accurate, consistent, and transparent public health information.