Montanez v. Berryhill
Montanez v. Berryhill
Opinion of the Court
Plaintiff appeals from a denial of disability benefits by the Commissioner of Social Security ("the Commissioner"). The action is one brought pursuant to
On December 6, 2013, plaintiff filed an application for supplemental security income, alleging an inability to work since December 5, 2013. (Administrative Transcript, Dkt. # 9 at 15). His application was initially denied. Plaintiff requested a hearing, which was held on February 11, 2016 via videoconference before Administrative Law Judge ("ALJ") Michael Carr. The ALJ issued a decision on March 30, 2016, concluding that plaintiff was not disabled under the Social Security Act. (Dkt. # 9 at 15-23). That decision became the final decision of the Commissioner when the Appeals Council denied review on July 3, 2017. (Dkt. # 9 at 1-3). Plaintiff now appeals from that decision.
The plaintiff has moved (Dkt. # 12), and the Commissioner has cross moved (Dkt. # 15) for judgment on the pleadings pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. Proc. 12(c). For the reasons set forth below, the plaintiff's motion is granted, the Commissioner's cross motion is denied, and the matter is remanded for further proceedings.
DISCUSSION
Determination of whether a claimant is disabled within the meaning of the Social *564Security Act follows a well-known five-step sequential evaluation, familiarity with which is presumed. See Bowen v. City of New York ,
The ALJ summarized plaintiff's medical records, particularly his treatment notes for schizophrenia, which the ALJ concluded constituted a severe impairment not meeting or equaling a listed impairment. The ALJ found that plaintiff, then a 36-year-old man with a limited education, unable to communicate in English and with no past relevant work, has the residual functional capacity ("RFC") to perform work at all exertional levels, but with limitations to performing simple, routine and repetitive tasks; making simple work-related decisions; only occasional contact with supervisors, coworkers, and the general public; and no work that requires a specific production rate. (Dkt. # 9 at 19). When presented with this RFC at the hearing, vocational expert Carly Coughlin testified that an individual with these limitations could perform the positions of dishwasher, packager, and buser. The ALJ accordingly found plaintiff not disabled. (Dkt. # 9 at 22).
I. Medical Opinions of Record
The Court notes that the record does not contain any medical opinions from a treating physician specific to plaintiff's treatment for schizophrenia, such as a treating psychologist or psychiatrist, since plaintiff's prior mental health treatment appears to have been rendered primarily by non-physician specialists. As such, the only opinions by physicians and treating sources concerning plaintiff's mental limitations and mental health treatment derive from consulting and/or examining physicians, non-physician therapists, and a stage agency review physician. While the opinions of consulting and examining physicians and non-acceptable medical sources are not entitled to controlling weight, in the absence of a controlling treating physician opinion, such opinions "take[ ] on particular significance." Dioguardi v. Commissioner ,
Here, the ALJ erred in his consideration of the medical opinions of record. Initially, the ALJ assigned "some" weight to the opinion of consulting psychologist Dr. Yu-Ying Lin. Noting that Dr. Lin had seen plaintiff on only one occasion, the ALJ rejected Dr. Lin's more restrictive findings - that plaintiff is "moderately to markedly limited" in learning new tasks and that he requires supervision for even simple tasks - and concluded instead that "the totality of the record aligns more on the moderate side of severity." (Dkt. # 9 at 21). The ALJ did not describe the "totality of the record" that supported this finding, although it is possible that the ALJ was referring to the limited selection *565of evidence he had discussed previously in the opinion, comprised of treatment records demonstrating plaintiff's inconsistent medication management, periodic presentation with normal mood and affect at some medical appointments, and some of his Global Assessment of Functioning ("GAF") scores. (Dkt. # 9 at 20).
Regardless, based on this unspecified "totality," the ALJ went on to reject every part of every medical opinion in the record that included a greater than moderate limitation in any area, on the basis that it conflicted with his threshold finding of "moderate" limitations. The ALJ gave "some weight" to the opinion of state agency consultant Dr. R. Nobel, who found that plaintiff had moderate difficulties in all areas of mental functioning, but provided no explanation for his reasoning. (Dkt. # 9 at 64-72). The ALJ likewise gave "some weight" to the assessments rendered by plaintiff's treating therapists at the Monroe County Department of Social Services (Licensed Master Social Worker Stephanie Bourne, and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Randy Smart), crediting them only to the extent that they were "consistent with Dr. Nobel's and Dr. Lin's opinions," and thus implicitly rejecting their opinions, based on a three-year treatment history, that plaintiff will have episodes of decompensation, will frequently have difficulties interacting appropriately with others, has moderate difficulties maintaining a schedule, is incapable of using public transportation, and cannot perform more than ten to fifteen hours of work per week.
Manifestly, the Court's analysis is frustrated by the ALJ's lack of explanation for the "some weight" given to each medical opinion of record. The ALJ did not identify those portions of the opinions he rejected, or cite to any evidence of record which contradicted those opinions or otherwise explained why they were not worthy of greater weight. See e.g., Paulin v. Berryhill ,
"While the ALJ is not obligated to 'reconcile explicitly every conflicting shred of medical testimony,' he cannot simply selectively choose evidence in the record that supports his conclusions." Gecevic v. Secretary of Health & Human Servs. ,
CONCLUSION
For the forgoing reasons, I find that the ALJ's decision was not supported by substantial *566evidence, and was the product of legal error. The plaintiff's motion for judgment on the pleadings (Dkt. # 12) is granted, the Commissioner's cross motion for judgment on the pleadings (Dkt. # 15) is denied, and this matter is remanded for further proceedings. On remand, the ALJ should reassess the evidence of record, contacting medical sources for clarification or soliciting additional consulting opinions where appropriate, and should render a new decision which provides a detailed explanation of the evidence of record supporting the ALJ's findings, identifies the weight given to each medical opinion of record, and explains the reasons therefor.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Luis Ubiles MONTANEZ v. Nancy A. BERRYHILL, Acting Commissioner of Social Security
- Cited By
- 20 cases
- Status
- Published