At least 49 cases have been confirmed. Health officials — who are scrambling to get a handle on the vaccine-preventable outbreak — suspect 200 to 300 people may be infected.

In the last three weeks, 48 cases of measles have been identified, sending 13 patients to the hospital, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.

The measles outbreak first reported in Gaines County, Texas, has doubled to 48 cases since a count released earlier this week, the Texas Department of State Health Services said Friday. The first two cases were identified in late January and the numbers have been rising since.