A merger between the city and La Crosse County health departments was discussed during the mid-1970s and into the early 1980s. In May 1976, a City-County Liaison Committee recommended merger of the city health department and the county health nursing service. County supervisors wanted to wait to see how similar merger situations worked out elsewhere in the state, and the merger continued to be debated. County supervisors were also concerned about a rise in taxes for county residents due to a merger.

Finally in 1982, renewed efforts were made to merge the two departments. The La Crosse County Administration Committee approved a plan to merge the city and county health departments in February 1982. The La Crosse County Health Department Implementation Committee was created to make recommendations about the proposed merger, and in May 1982, the Implementation Committee recommended that the merged health department provide home nursing and community health services.

Concern arose over where the city/county health department offices would be located, whether or not the county would reimburse the city for the health department laboratory equipment, and the job status of current La Crosse City Health Department employees. After discussion, plans for the merger went ahead, and the La Crosse County Board decided to house most merged health department offices in the Grandview Building at 1707 Main Street in La Crosse. The laboratory, environmental control, and vector control offices remained at city hall. The county also agreed to pay the city $27,458 per year for laboratory facilities at city hall (of this amount, $19,125 paid for rent and $8333 paid for lab supplies). The merger went into effect as of January 1, 1983, and William Schmidt was appointed director of the county health department on January 20, 1983.

La Crosse city residents saw a slight decrease in the amount they paid for services since they were no longer paying for upkeep of the La Crosse city and county health departments. Those residents outside the city of La Crosse had a slight increase in their taxes due to the merger. County residents experienced additional benefits with the merger including additional inspections of restaurants, food and milk product sampling, and water sampling of municipal wells.

The county health department continued its nursing service after the merger. However, nine of the former city health department’s nurses formed a private nursing service, the La Crosse Visiting Nurses Association (LVNA). About 125 of the 325 patients formerly serviced by thecity health department’s nurses agreed to be seen by the newly formed organization.