Masters v. Commissioner of Social Security

707 F. App'x 374
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
DecidedNovember 17, 2017
Docket17-5561
StatusUnpublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 707 F. App'x 374 (Masters v. Commissioner of Social Security) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Masters v. Commissioner of Social Security, 707 F. App'x 374 (6th Cir. 2017).

Opinion

OPINION

BERNICE BOUIE DONALD, Circuit Judge.

The Commissioner of Social Security denied Mary K. Masters’ (“Masters”) application for Supplemental Security Income (“SSI”) benefits. Pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 405(g), Masters sought judicial review of that decision in the district court, which affirmed the denial of benefits. Masters now appeals, asserting primarily that the overwhelming weight of the evidence shows that she is totally disabled and that the administrative law judge (“ALJ”) failed to properly apply Circuit precedent. We AFFIRM.

I.

On October 16, 2012, Masters filed an application for SSI, alleging a disability with an onset date of May 10, 2012, Her claim was denied initially on April 4, 2013, and upon reconsideration on July 29, 2013. Masters requested a hearing, which was conducted on November 4, 2014 before an ALJ.

At the hearing, Masters testified that she has a college degree, that she previously worked in a classroom, retail, restaurants, in housekeeping, and as a certified nurse assistant. She testified that she experiences debilitating migraines, has interstitial cystitis for which she has surgery every six months, that she gets injections in her knees, has joint dysfunction in both of her hips, and has been diagnosed with fibromyalgia, arthritis, chronic fatigue syndrome, depression, and anxiety. She testified that her migraines typically last two to three days and occur frequently. Masters testified that when she takes medication for inflammation and pain, such as Voltaren or Neurontin, the medications are typically effective, but on bad days, she is unable to walk. At times, Masters experiences panic attacks, and she has been prescribed some medications for both anxiety and depression. She testified that she has difficulty sleeping, but is able to take care of her own personal hygiene and bathing, care for her children, attend church, and perform other daily activities.

Jane Hull, a vocational expert (“VE”) also testified. At the hearing, the ALJ asked Hull a series of hypothetical questions about an individual around Masters’ age and education with her past jobs. The ALJ presented Hull with a hypothetical of an individual who is “limited to lifting, carrying, pushing, pulling” less than 10 pounds frequently and 10 pounds occasionally, who could sit for a total of six hours in an eight hour day, stand and walk for a total of two hours in an eight hour day, who could “never climb ramps and stairs or ladders, ropes, and scaffolds,” who could “occasionally stoop .,. [n]ever kneel, crouch, or crawl,” and had other environmental and mental limitations. With those limitations, Hull testified that unskilled office clerk jobs or other sedentary work would be available in the national economy. When the ALJ added a hypothetical that the individual would in addition be “off task 10 percent of every day in addition to normal breaks and would miss more than two days of work per month,” Hull testified that there would be no work in the national economy.

The medical evidence in the record provides additional context to Masters’ medical history. Treatment notes show that Masters visited a variety of providers between 2012 and 2015. In 2012, Masters was receiving treatment for headaches, fibro-myalgia, overactive bladder, and depression. In the second half of 2012, Masters took medication for her overactive bladder condition, depression, headaches, and fi-bromyalgia. Masters visited a chiropractor five times between late 2012 and early 2013 for hip and knee pain. In March 2013, after going to the hospital for bladder pain, Masters was diagnosed with interstitial cystitis and began a course of medications applied directly to her bladder. There is nothing in the record to show that Masters sought treatment in late 2013 or in 2014.

In March 2013, Naushad Haziq, M.D. examined Masters in connection with her SSI application. Dr. Haziq reviewed Masters’ medical records and conducted an examination, concluding that she “has normal gait and station”; that she “is able to stand unassisted and is able to rise from a seat and step up and down from the examination table”; that she could follow instructions, appeared “comfortable while seated”; and other than appearing “pale, lethargic and somewhat depressed,” was in “no acute physical distress.” His impression included that Masters had generalized lethargy, generalized pain, “intermittent neck and low back pain, possible degenerative disc disease, possibly secondary to fibromyalgia,” a history of severe headaches, and a “longstanding history of anxiety and depression requiring medication.” In October 2014, treating physician Arden Acob, M.D. opined that Masters’ migraines render her unable to work; however, no treatment notes are included in the record.

Masters also had a consultative examination with Timothy L. Baggs, Psy.D., who concluded that Masters’ mental health status likely included diagnoses of major depressive disorder; mild, dysthymic disorder; and anxiety disorder. State agency psychologists Alex Guerrero, M.D. and Robert Hodes, Ph.D. reviewed the evidence and opined that Masters’ depression and anxiety would not significantly limit basic work activities..

On January 6, 2015, the ALJ issued a decision determining that Masters was not disabled for purposes of the Act. Following the five-step sequential analysis laid out in 20 C.F.R. § 416.920(a), the ALJ ultimately concluded that, despite limitations, there remained jobs in the national economy Masters is capable of performing. At step one, the ALJ determined that Masters had not engaged in substantial gainful activity since the benefits application date. At step two, the ALJ found that Masters had severe impairments, including fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, osteoarthritis of the knees, migraine headaches, major depressive disorder, and general anxiety disorder. The ALJ indicated that the record did not substantiate severe impairment based on her alleged neck, low back, and hip pain; interstitial cystitis; or chronic vitamin B12 deficiency. Specifically as to the cystitis, the ALJ concluded that the evidence showed that Masters did not report continuing issues after undergoing a cystosco-py. At step three, the ALJ considered that the severity of Masters’ impairments did not appear to prevent her from an array of daily, regular activities, including caring for her children, caring for her personal hygiene, taking medication, completing housework, running errands, driving, preparing meals, attending church, and other activities. As to Masters’ mental impairments, the ALJ found that she “has only a mild restriction with activities of daily living and no more than moderate limitations with social functioning, concentration, persistence, and pace.”

At step four, the ALJ determined that Masters was not totally disabled for purposes of the Act, concluding that she has a residual functional capacity (“RFC”) to perform light work with certain restrictions.

The ALJ attributed great weight to Dr. Haziq’s physical exam, concluding that his findings were “substantially consistent” with other evidence in the record. Further weight was afforded to Dr. Baggs’ consultative mental health exam for its consistency with Masters’ treatment and lifestyle.

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707 F. App'x 374, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/masters-v-commissioner-of-social-security-ca6-2017.