The debate will take place in Harrisburg, hosted by Nexstar Television and broadcast across at least 67 counties.

The Oz campaign told Newsweek that he will participate, though it’s contingent on three factors. One, the debate moderator must explain to the audience that Fetterman is using a closed captioning system during the debate, “to explain any delay between him being asked a question and responding.”

In addition to also demanding the debate be pushed from 60 to 90 minutes due to Fetterman being on delay, they also asked that questions posed by any Nexstar employee during Fetterman’s “practice” sessions must “bear zero resemblance to the actual questions asked during the debate.”

“We are totally fine with Fetterman practicing with the closed caption system, but not with Fetterman practicing his answers ahead of time in conjunction with the moderators,” the campaign said.

The announcement comes amid wide-ranging scrutiny of Fetterman, who previously dodged the Oz campaign’s calls for a debate. Concerns have also been raised about the health of the Democratic candidate, who is the state’s lieutenant governor, following a stroke in May.

Vote by mail has been going on for about a month.

The debate will air live on nine TV stations inside and outside the state: WPXI in Pittsburgh, WHTM in Harrisburg/Lancaster/Lebanon/York, WPHL in Philadelphia, WTAJ in Johnstown/Altoona/State College, WBRE and WYOU in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, WJET and WFXP in Erie and WYTV in Youngstown, Ohio.

The debate will also be live-streamed on Nexstar affiliates in nearby states and markets—including New York, Elmira and Buffalo in New York state and Washington, D.C.

Publications like the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette had called for Fetterman to make himself available to discuss the race’s issues in a debate setting. Others, like The Washington Post, called for a release of his medical records for independent review, saying he “squandered credibility by concealing from the public for two days after his stroke that he had been hospitalized.”

The Fetterman campaign maintains that having a debate was the plan “from the start.” A week ago, the campaign said that “it was always our intent to do that.”

“Enough distractions, it’s time to talk about the issues,” Rebecca Katz, senior adviser to the Fetterman campaign, said in a statement Wednesday.

“While John will be debating Dr. Oz next month, Oz doesn’t have to wait that long to be honest with Pennsylvania voters about where he really stands on abortion. It’s a simple question: Doctor: Would you vote for the Republicans’ national abortion ban or would you vote against it?” Katz said.

The Oz campaign has a different perspective.

“Doctor Oz has accepted seven different debates throughout September and October,” Casey Contres, Oz’s campaign manager, said in a statement. “Today, after being hit with massive criticism from state and national editorials and commentators for ducking, John Fetterman finally agreed to one debate…that was originally scheduled for October 5.”

On Monday, Fox News host Tucker Carlson called Fetterman a “walking vegetable” during an interview with Oz. But some Democrats have reportedly expressed worries about Fetterman’s health behind the scenes.

Reuters reported on Monday that five anonymous officials with the Pennsylvania Democratic Party are concerned about how Fetterman’s health will affect voters’ views of him.

Update 9/14/22, 4:32 p.m. ET: This story was updated with additional information and comment.