The number of measles cases exceeded 500 in Texas on Tuesday, according to the state’s health department, which made the update days after a second Texas child died after contracting the highly contagious illness that has been confirmed in at least 20 states.

According to U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, the Biden administration's policy is inconsistent with legislation already passed by Congress.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. praised the measles response in Texas and the U.S., saying it's a "model for the rest of the world." But the comparison to Europe is an unfair one.

The Houston area is already feeling the fallout from $11 billion in cuts to grants from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The infected person was contagious when they visited the Great Wolf Lodge hotel and waterpark and Grapevine Mills Mall between March 28 and 30, officials said.

An 8-year-old girl has died of measles in Texas. The patient was unvaccinated and had no underlying health issues, the hospital where the child received care told PEOPLE. This marks the second death of a child since the state’s outbreak began.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is on the ground in Texas for the second time this year, as an ongoing multistate measles outbreak centered in the western part of the state has grown to one of the worst the country has seen in decades.

The Texas health department on Friday reported 59 new measles cases in three days, bringing the total to 481 in the state, while New Mexico added six more infections, as the disease spreads across the United States.