Health · Pelican

Pelican, WI health

Pelican differs from Wisconsin on 9 of 40 measures. Where it trails the state most: more adults with heart disease (8.1% vs 6.6%) and more adults who have had cancer (10.5% vs 8.6%).

CDC PLACES 2025 · adults 18+ · ZIP code 54501 (all of Pelican)

B-Health Grade

TownTapestry Health GradeNew

B⁻

Pelican’s Health Grade: B−

On seven CDC health estimates for adults, Pelican is healthier than 47% of U.S. towns, and than 69% of towns with similar incomes.

B-Self-rated healthC+Physical distressB+Mental distressB-ObesityC+DiabetesC+SmokingC+Exercise

All U.S. towns we grade (19,420)Healthier than 47%

Less healthyHealthier

Wisconsin towns we grade (877)Healthier than 33%

Towns with similar incomes, $47K–$78K (8,608)Healthier than 69%

Better than its income would suggest. Pelican is healthier than most towns with similar incomes, even though its overall grade is B−.

These are estimates. At the ends of CDC’s likely ranges, Pelican could be anywhere from C− to B+.

How the Health Grade works

Seven CDC estimates. Adults in fair or poor health, frequent physical distress, frequent mental distress, obesity, diabetes, smoking and no exercise (CDC PLACES, 2025 release). On each one a town earns the share of U.S. towns doing worse, and those shares are averaged. It’s the same score as our Healthiest towns in Wisconsin ranking.
Graded on a national curve. Every U.S. town with 1,000+ residents and all seven estimates (19,420 places) is lined up by score: A+ top 5%A next 10%A- next 10%B B+ to B−, next 30%C C+ to C−, next 30%D D and D−, bottom 15%
Not adjusted for income. Wealthier towns are usually healthier, and the grade shows that as it is. The similar-incomes bar compares Pelican with U.S. towns whose median household income is within 25% of its own.
Modeled, not measured. CDC combines national survey answers with each area’s age, sex, race and income mix. Pelican’s figures come from the ZIP codes that cover it, weighted by land area. High blood pressure is left out because it tracks age more than anything else. The confidence line recomputes the grade with every estimate at the low, then the high, end of its range.

Report card

How Pelican compares with Wisconsin

Each theme counts how many of its measures are better, worse or too close to call against the state. Tap one to jump to it.

Chronic conditions

Out of every 100 Pelican adults…

37 of every 100 Pelican adults have high blood pressure

Wisconsin: 33 in 100 · worse · margin 33.9–41%

Bars show Pelican; the black tick is Wisconsin. Tap a condition to see it as people.

Habits

Everyday habits, side by side with the state

Pelican, betterPelican, worseToo close to callWisconsin

Get no exerciseshare of adults 27.5% Pelican
WI 26.6%

Sleep under 7 hoursshare of adults 33.8% Pelican
WI 32.6%

Binge drinkshare of adults 18.2% Pelican
WI 19%

Smoke cigarettesshare of adults 15.3% Pelican
WI 13.6%

0%10%20%30%40%

Care & screenings

Keeping up with care

Share of Pelican adults getting routine care. The full ring is 100%; the dark tick marks Wisconsin.

Yearly checkup

WI 78%

Dentist visit

WI 67%

Cholesterol check

WI 86%

Colon screening

WI 69%

Mammogram

WI 80%

Taking BP meds

WI 78%

1 in 14

working-age adults has no health insurance

Pelican 7.1% · Wisconsin 1 in 13 (8%)

Mind & connection

How Pelican adults are doing

1 in 3Pelican adults feel lonely

31.8% · Wisconsin 30.6% · too close to call

1 in 4Pelican adults have been diagnosed with depression

24.7% · Wisconsin 23.2% · too close to call

1 in 5Pelican adults lack social or emotional support

19.3% · Wisconsin 20.2% · too close to call

1 in 6Pelican adults are in frequent mental distress

15.9% · Wisconsin 15.5% · too close to call

Everyday needs

Making ends meet

Needs that shape health as much as any doctor visit: food, housing, utilities and a way to get around.

1 in 9

Pelican adults worry about having enough food

11.3% · WI 12.1% · about the same

1 in 11

Pelican adults worry about keeping their housing

8.9% · WI 9.7% · about the same

1 in 19

Pelican adults were threatened with a utility shut-off

5.3% · WI 5.5% · about the same

1 in 16

Pelican adults lack reliable transportation

6.4% · WI 6.7% · about the same

12.7% of Pelican adults receive SNAP (food stamps), compared with 12.5% across Wisconsin.

Disability

Living with a disability

32.8%

of Pelican adults live with a disability (Wisconsin 29.4%). Walking or climbing stairs is the most common.

Walking or climbing stairs16%

Thinking or memory13.1%

Hearing8.4%

Errands alone8.5%

Vision4.7%

Dressing or bathing4%

Black tick: Wisconsin. Shown without a better/worse judgment.

Around Pelican

Pelican and the towns around it

Pick a measure to shade the map. Darker is worse for health. Pins are the nearest hospitals and community health centers.

34.3%42.7%· darker is worse for health

Obesity

#6 of 17towns on this map, healthiest first

Enterprise35.1%

Stella35.9%

Pelican36%

Crescent36%

Monico36%

Pine Lake36%

Rhinelander37.2%

Care nearby

Aspirus Rhinelander HospitalRhinelander · 4.5 mi · ★★★★★ · ER Directions Medicare profile

Aspirus Tomahawk HospitalTomahawk · 20.4 mi · ER · rural critical access Directions Medicare profile

Aspirus Eagle River HospitalEagle River · 23.5 mi · ER · rural critical access Directions Medicare profile

Marshfield Medical Center - MinocquaMinocqua · 27.1 mi · ★★★★★ · ER Directions Medicare profile

Family Health Center - Rhinelander Alcohol & Drug Recovery CenterRhinelander · 3.4 mi · community health center, sliding-scale fees Directions

Family Health Center - Rhinelander Dental CenterRhinelander · 3.4 mi · community health center, sliding-scale fees Directions

✓ Primary carePelican is not a shortage area

✓ Dental carePelican is not a shortage area

✓ Mental healthPelican is not a shortage area

Shortage areas: HRSA Health Professional Shortage Areas. Hospitals: Medicare overall star ratings, 1–5. Distances are straight-line from the center of Pelican. Nearby towns are shaded from CDC's estimates for their ZIP codes, or CDC's own figure for cities and villages.

All 40 measures for Pelican

Measure	Pelican	Margin	Wisconsin
Chronic conditions
High blood pressure	37.3%	33.9–41%	33.3%	worse
High cholesterol	37%	33.5–40.9%	34.4%	about the same
Obesity	36%	30.8–41.7%	37.7%	about the same
Arthritis	30.8%	27.9–33.9%	26.6%	worse
Depression	24.7%	21.6–28.1%	23.2%	about the same
Lost all teeth (65+)	11.7%	9.5–14%	9.9%	about the same
Asthma	10.8%	9.6–12.1%	10.8%	about the same
Cancer (not skin)	10.5%	9.5–11.5%	8.6%	worse
Diabetes	13.1%	11.6–15%	11.4%	worse
COPD	7.9%	7–8.9%	6.5%	worse
Heart disease	8.1%	7.3–9%	6.6%	worse
Stroke	3.9%	3.6–4.3%	3.4%	worse
Habits
Smoke cigarettes	15.3%	13.3–17.5%	13.6%	about the same
Binge drink	18.2%	15.3–21.4%	19%	about the same
Get no exercise	27.5%	24–31.5%	26.6%	about the same
Sleep under 7 hours	33.8%	29.2–38.6%	32.6%	about the same
Care & screenings
Yearly checkup	79.1%	75.8–82%	77.6%	about the same
Dentist visit	63.7%	60.4–66.8%	67.1%	worse
Cholesterol check	87.1%	85.5–88.6%	85.9%	about the same
Colon screening	70%	65.8–73.9%	69.4%	about the same
Mammogram	79.1%	73.2–84.2%	80.3%	about the same
Taking BP meds	79.4%	76.6–82.1%	77.8%	about the same
No health insurance	7.1%	6–8.4%	8%	about the same
Mind & connection
Feel lonely	31.8%	27.7–36%	30.6%	about the same
Lack emotional support	19.3%	16.5–22.2%	20.2%	about the same
Frequent mental distress	15.9%	14.1–17.7%	15.5%	about the same
Fair or poor health	19%	16.9–21.5%	17.8%	about the same
Frequent physical distress	15%	13.4–16.8%	12.9%	worse
Everyday needs
Food insecurity	11.3%	9.5–13.2%	12.1%	about the same
Housing insecurity	8.9%	7.6–10.4%	9.7%	about the same
Utility shut-off threat	5.3%	4.5–6.1%	5.5%	about the same
No reliable transportation	6.4%	5.5–7.2%	6.7%	about the same
Receive SNAP	12.7%	10.9–14.7%	12.5%
Disability
Any disability	32.8%	29.3–36.7%	29.4%
Walking or climbing stairs	16%	14.2–18%	13.4%
Thinking or memory	13.1%	11.6–14.7%	12.8%
Hearing	8.4%	7.6–9.5%	6.9%
Vision	4.7%	4.3–5.2%	4.5%
Dressing or bathing	4%	3.6–4.4%	3.5%
Errands alone	8.5%	7.6–9.5%	7.9%

About these numbers

How CDC estimates town health

They're modeled estimatesCDC combines a large national health survey with each area's age, sex, race and income mix to estimate local rates. Nobody surveyed Pelican door to door.

Close calls stay grayEvery figure has a margin of error. When the Wisconsin figure falls inside it, we don't call Pelican better or worse.

Why a ZIP codeCDC publishes towns like Pelican by ZIP code. We weight the ZIP codes that cover Pelican by how much of its land each one covers.

CDC PLACES: Local Data for Better Health, 2025 release. The Wisconsin figure combines its counties, weighted by adult population.

Health estimates: CDC PLACES. Hospitals and star ratings: Medicare Care Compare (CMS). Health centers and shortage areas: HRSA. Town boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau.