Lopez v. Berryhill

340 F. Supp. 3d 696
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Illinois
DecidedDecember 3, 2018
DocketNo. 18 C 3344
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 340 F. Supp. 3d 696 (Lopez v. Berryhill) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lopez v. Berryhill, 340 F. Supp. 3d 696 (illinoised 2018).

Opinion

Jeffrey Cole, UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

Ricky Lopez applied for Disability Insurance Benefits ("DIB") under Title II of the Social Security Act ("Act"), 42 U.S.C. §§ 416(i), 423, about four and a half years ago. (Administrative Record (R.) 175-81). He claimed that he became disabled as of December 9, 2013, due to heart problems, hypertension, high cholesterol, and sleep apnea. (R. 203). Over the ensuing four years, Mr. Lopez's application was denied at every level of administrative review: initial, reconsideration, administrative law judge (ALJ), and appeals council. It is the ALJ's decision that is before the court for review. See 20 C.F.R. §§ 404.955 ; 404.981. Mr. Lopez filed suit under 42 U.S.C. § 405(g), and the parties have consented to the jurisdiction of a Magistrate Judge pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c). Mr. Lopez asks the court to reverse and remand the Commissioner's decision, while the Commissioner seeks an order affirming the decision.

I.

Mr. Lopez is 57 years old, and was 53 when his insured status expired in December 2014. (R. 267).1 He has an exemplary work history, working steadily for over 30 years as a carpenter before his heart problems arose. (R. 193-94, 204). This was heavy, physical labor. (R. 65-67). He last tried to work for couple of months in 2013, but has not worked at all since December 2013. (R. 204).

Mr. Lopez has amassed a juggernaut of a medical record - over 1100 pages (R. 347-1503) - covering extensive treatment for his cardiac impairment, and additional treatment for his shoulder. That's not uncommon in these types of cases and, as is also not uncommon, not much of it is pertinent. The parties have isolated just 40 pages or so that are relevant to their positions here and to the review of the ALJ's opinion. [Dkt. # 12]. Accordingly, we will dispense with a tedious summary and discuss only those doctor visits and medical findings that are pertinent.

After an administrative hearing - at which Mr. Lopez, represented by counsel, and a vocational expert testified - the ALJ determined he was not disabled. The ALJ found that Mr. Lopez had several severe impairments: "obesity, history of right rotator cuff tear post-surgical repair, obstructive sleep apnea, arrhythmiaatrial fibrillation, congestive heart failure, aortic valve replacement." (R. 17). The ALJ dismissed other impairments that came up at various points in the medical record as non-severe, including hypertension, allergies, *699and right knee issues. (R. 18). Mr. Lopez's depression was non-severe as well, but did cause mild limitations in his abilities to understand, remember, and apply information; interact with others; maintain concentration, persistence, or pace; adapt or manage oneself. (R. 18-19). None of Mr. Lopez's impairments, singly or in combination, amounted to a condition that met or equaled an impairment assumed to be disabling in the Commissioner's listings. (R. 22-23).

The ALJ then determined that Mr. Lopez could perform "light work...except that [he] could occasionally climb ramps and stairs, but he could never climb ropes, ladders, or scaffolds. He could occasionally stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. He could never be exposed to unprotected heights, moving mechanical parts, or vibrations. He could not reach overhead on the dominant right side." (R. 20). The ALJ said that he found Mr. Lopez's "medically determinable impairments could reasonably be expected to cause the alleged symptoms; however, [his] statements concerning the intensity, persistence and limiting effects of these symptoms are not entirely consistent with the medical evidence and other evidence in the record for reasons explained in this decision." (R. 24). In addition to determining that the medical evidence was not consistent with Mr. Lopez's allegations, the ALJ also found that Mr. Lopez had not received the type of treatment one would expect from a totally disabled individual, that he was not compliant with treatment - he stopped taking his irregular heartbeat medication for a month in 2014, and his daily activities were not as limited as one would given his allegations of disabling symptoms. (R. 23). Specifically, the ALJ pointed out that he was able to manage his personal care, do some household chores, and accompany his wife when she shopped. (R. 24).

The ALJ then assessed the medical opinion evidence. She gave little weight to the opinion of Paul Peprich - a physical therapist - that Mr. Lopez had only an 11% impairment because it was couched in the terms of workers' compensation. (R. 23). The ALJ gave no weight to the opinion of Dr. Thometz that Mr. Lopez could not work as a carpenter because it pre-dated Mr. Lopez's alleged onset date and was an opinion reserved for the Commissioner. (R. 23). The ALJ gave great weight to the opinions of the doctors that reviewed the medical evidence on behalf of the Agency, because she found them consistent with the record as a whole. (R. 23).

Next, the ALJ found that Mr. Lopez was 52 years old when his insured status expired (R. 24) - he was actually 53 - and that made him an individual "closely approaching advanced age" under the Commissioner's regulations. (R. 24). He had less than a high school education and no transferable job skills. (R. 24). Given these vocational factors, Mr. Lopez would be found "not disabled" under the Medical Vocational Guidelines if he had the capacity to perform a full range of light work. (R. 24). As he did not, the ALJ relied on the testimony of a vocational expert who said that an individual with Mr. Lopez's restrictions could perform light work as a parking meter collector, a small product assembler, an usher (do they still exist?), or a housekeeper cleaner. (R. 25). As these jobs were claimed to exist in significant numbers in the national economy, the ALJ concluded that Mr. Lopez was not disabled before the expiration of his insured status was not entitled to DIB under the Act. (R. 25-26).

II.

If the ALJ's decision is supported by substantial evidence, the court on judicial review must uphold that decision *700even if the court might have decided the case differently in the first instance. See 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). Substantial evidence is "such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion." Richardson v. Perales,

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Bluebook (online)
340 F. Supp. 3d 696, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lopez-v-berryhill-illinoised-2018.