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Marathon County health department to open online ‘Life Survey’ March 1 to shape 2026 community health report
Summary
Marathon County will launch an online, multi‑language community engagement survey March 1–May 31, 2025, to collect resident input for the 2026 “Life” report; the county health officer said the survey will complement local data and be used by hospitals, nonprofits and schools for planning.
Laura Skinner, Marathon County health officer, told the Health & Human Services Committee the county will open a new online community engagement survey—branded the 2025 Life Survey—on March 1, 2025, and keep it open through May 31 to collect resident perspectives for the 2026 Life Report.
Skinner said the survey fulfills a state data collection requirement under DHS 140.03 that directs local health departments to gather data to guide public health planning and produce a community health assessment at least every five years. The Life Report, produced every three years and available through the Marathon County Pulse data platform, will for the first time include resident‑voice input gathered from the 2025 survey alongside the usual indicator data.
The county has prepared an outreach toolkit for community partners and will make the survey available online in multiple languages; paper copies will be available upon request. Skinner said the health department hopes to increase participation beyond peer counties that have adopted online surveys—she cited Wood County’s 3,500 responses in 2023 as a benchmark.
Jeff Sargent, executive director of United Way of Marathon County, recorded a short video urging residents to participate: “The survey is for everyone who lives here and takes just 5 to 10 minutes to complete. It's your chance to share your opinions on what's important to improve the quality of life in our community.”
Skinner asked committee members to share the survey toolkit with constituents; the committee discussed distribution methods and the potential to display the promotional video on social media channels. The county plans to use results to inform community calls to action across seven Life Report sections and to coordinate with hospitals, federally qualified health centers and nonprofits on priorities and resource allocation.
