Sign up for The Brief, The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news. The number of cases reported in Texas' historic measles outbreak has risen to 683 cases in 29 counties,

More than 700 cases of measles have been confirmed in an outbreak across Texas, state health officials reported Tuesday, as other outbreaks of the highly contagious illness spread across dozens of other states.

The Texas health department on Friday reported 709 cases of measles in the state, an increase of 7 cases since May 6, as the U.S. battles one of its worst outbreaks of the childhood disease.