The Texas health department reported 663 cases of measles in the state on Tuesday, an increase of 17 cases since April 25, as the U.S. battles one of its worst outbreaks of the childhood disease.

Cases in Gaines County, the center of the outbreak, rose to 396, three more from its last update on Friday, the Texas Department of State Health Services said.

Eighty-seven patients have been hospitalized, the agency said.

Researchers have warned that the country is at a tipping point for the return of endemic measles, a quarter century after the disease was declared eradicated in the country.

“The rate of rise in measles cases appears to be slowing down, but it is still concerning that we are seeing more cases adding to the count,” said Sapna Singh, chief medical officer at Texas Children’s Pediatrics.

New Mexico’s health department reported 66 cases on Tuesday, the same as its last update. Most of the state’s cases are from Lea County, adjacent to Gaines County in Texas.

“The ideal situation is to see a few weeks of no increase in the case count before we can have some optimism in the spread slowing down,” said Singh.

U.S. pediatricians and infectious disease experts say the fight against rising measles cases nationwide is being hampered by a lack of forceful advocacy for vaccination from government health officials and statements on unproven treatments that are confusing parents.

Doctors assert that vaccination is the most effective way to prevent infection.

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