Conversation so far:
What happened to Cliff Stearns in 2012?
On August 14, 2012, Cliff Stearns lost to veterinarian Ted Yoho in a four-way Republican primary by about 1 percent of the vote.
What were the people sickened by in a 2012 outbreak, according to Cliff Stearns and the CDC?
People were sickened due to a meningitis outbreak.

Question: What was the cause of the outbreak?
Self-contained rewrite: What was the cause, according to Cliff Stearns, of the meningitis outbreak of 2012?