The aches of persuasive writing

Below is a letter I wrote today to my dental insurance company, asking that it pay for my recent $83 teeth cleaning. If you read the letter, you'll understand why it wasn't originally funded, and why I think the claims agents should make an exception to their policy. Can you make note of any rhetorical devices I use to get my points across? Do you think I'll end up getting reimbursed?

June 11, 2007

To Whom It May Concern:

I would greatly appreciate it if you could fund claim # ******, a Prophylaxis-adult for $83 that took place on 4/11/2007.

The reason stated for why the claim was not paid was “less than six months between cleaning.” That is true. My prior cleaning had been on 10/18/06. If I were able to have waited a week for my April cleaning, it would have been funded.

Unfortunately, I was not able to wait a week. After moving to a new town, I switched dentists. Knowing it had been nearly six months since my last appointment, and because my mouth had been aching on the lower right side, I knew I needed a new dentist and an appointment as soon as possible.

When I called to make an appointment, the soonest available opening was on 4/11/07. It did not occur to me at that time that this date was actually one week shy of six months. I was told the next opening was in a month and a half. With that as the alternative, and knowing it wouldn’t be prudent to wait an additional 45 days for an appointment when my mouth was aching, I booked the opening.

Given the fact that I was only seven days away from being six months removed from my last cleaning, the fact that I moved and switched to a new dentist, the fact that my mouth was aching and I needed treatment, and the fact that the next available appointment from this dentist – who came highly recommended from colleagues – was more than a month and a half later, I would hope that you could find it within your resources and rationale to pay claim # ******, the $83 teeth cleaning I had on 4/11/07.

I would like you to know I have learned a rather important (and costly) lesson. In the future I will make sure I wait the full 180 days – rather than 173 – before making my next cleaning appointment. I also swear that this will be a one-time only request, due to its unique and unusual circumstances.

Thank you very much for your time, understanding, and consideration.

Image from http://householdphysician.com, accessed 6/11/07