Cases where someone has written in to a state/government official and been succesful?

Please site your RELIABLE sources.Cases where someone has written in to a state/government official and been succesful?
I am a small business owner and have several times written to my local or state representatives to help navigate red tape. This is why they are there.





Perhaps if you were more specific, the answers could be more specific.Cases where someone has written in to a state/government official and been succesful?
I recently wrote an email to each of my state's senators (Ohio). Within two or three days, I received an email back from each of them regarding the issue. Below is the email I got back from him.


Dear Miss Callen:





Thank you for sharing your views on health reform.





With health care costs rising to a breaking point and access to health coverage rapidly eroding, our health care system is in need of reform. We must reduce the long-term growth of health care costs for patients, taxpayers, and businesses; protect families from bankruptcy or debt because of health expenditures; guarantee a choice of doctors and health plans; invest in prevention and wellness; improve patient safety and quality of care; assure affordable, quality health coverage for all Americans; and end barriers to coverage for people with pre-existing conditions.





One promising solution to the problems of cost, quality, and access that plague our health care system is to increase competition in the health insurance market. If the private insurance industry was truly competitive, then there would be strong incentives to provide coverage to as many Americans as possible and to build customer loyalty through cost savings and quality improvements. Unfortunately, insurers do not truly compete against one another; instead, they make use of the same basic strategies to earn significant profits. These tactics include selectively insuring the lowest risk enrollees, slow-walking claims payments so they can earn interest on every premium dollar, and denying as many claims as possible.





What the insurance industry needs is some healthy competition from a public insurance option. This option would not replace employer-sponsored coverage and no one would be forced into it; the public option would simply give uninsured or underinsured Americans the choice of enrolling in an insurance plan that does not engage in the same cost-avoidance tactics as private insurance plans do. The public health insurance option would also be a vehicle for improvements in quality, coverage, and provider-access that sets the bar higher for private insurance plans. This option would be available to all Americans: both private and government employees, including members of Congress and their staffs.





Since Congress began debating health reform, an overwhelming number of people in Ohio have contacted me. I appreciate this input and am carefully considering the thoughts, questions, and concerns that you and other Ohioans have shared with me.





One question I am often asked is whether I would enroll in the public insurance option. Since first coming to Congress in 1993, I have refused to enroll in the coverage offered to members of Congress until every American has access to high-quality, affordable health insurance. Should a health care reform bill pass that offers a public insurance option, I would be pleased to enroll.





I have also heard from individuals and businesses concerned about proposals to tax employer-sponsored benefits. I am opposed to taxing these benefits, which would unjustifiably increase the cost of health insurance for working families in Ohio.





Several Ohioans have also questioned whether Americans should be required to purchase coverage. They have expressed concerns over establishing fines intended to increase participation in the health insurance system.





It is important to clarify that these fines would not affect anyone who is currently insured. One of the key principles of the reform effort is that Americans who are satisfied with their coverage today should be able to keep it without being subject to additional costs. However, without a mechanism that encourages the purchase of insurance, some individuals will continue to forego coverage, resulting in uncompensated care costs that inflate insurance premiums and increase the costs of Medicare and Medicaid.





Unfortunately, too many Americans today forego health insurance not by choice, but by circumstance. Many Americans are left without health insurance because their employers don鈥檛 offer it, and because it is too expensive to buy in the individual market. First and foremost, health reform must be about helping these individuals obtain quality, affordable health insurance. That鈥檚 why I am working to ensure that individuals who cannot afford the high costs of coverage are provided with federal subsidies to help them purchase insurance. I recognize that, even with federal help, some individuals will still not be able to afford health insurance and I firmly believe that those individuals should not have to pay any fines because they are unable to afford health insurance.





The Senate is still in the process of consolidating two proposals 鈥?one from the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, of which I am a member, and another from the Finance Committee. The HELP Committee spent several weeks working to pass a health reform bill that includes 161 provisions promoted by Republi