Reynard v. Colvin

220 F. Supp. 3d 529, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 151694, 2016 WL 6476959
CourtDistrict Court, D. Vermont
DecidedNovember 2, 2016
DocketCase No. 2: 14-cv-00252
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 220 F. Supp. 3d 529 (Reynard v. Colvin) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Vermont primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Reynard v. Colvin, 220 F. Supp. 3d 529, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 151694, 2016 WL 6476959 (D. Vt. 2016).

Opinion

Opinion and Order

William K. Sessions, III District Court Judge

Plaintiff Andrew Reynard appeals the decision of an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) denying his September 27, 2011 applications for Title II social security disability insurance benefits and Title XVI supplemental security income (SSI) benefits. Mr. Reynard alleges that he became unable to work on June 9, 2011. Administrative Record (hereafter “AR”) 296. In particular, Mr. Reynard stated on his initial application that he has difficulties sitting and walking for any extended period of time and that he has difficulties resting. AR 253. With respect to his mental state, Mr. Reynard stated that he has childhood onset of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), that his PTSD affects his ability to get along with others, and that he does not socialize much because he has difficulties trusting other people. AR 259-260. He also stated that he has a limited attention span and that he forgets spoken instructions easily. AR 258. On his reconsideration application, filed after Mr. Reynard’s girlfriend attempted suicide, the plaintiff alleged increased anxiety and depression stemming from trauma triggers. AR 274. In support of his application, Mr. Reynard submitted abundant evidence of his physical and emotional conditions and of their effects on his ability to work.1 His application was initially denied on February 7, 2012 and denied on reconsideration on April 18, 2012. Mr. Reynard requested a hearing before an ALJ, who denied Mr. Reynard’s application on May 28, 2013. The Social Security Appeals Council denied Mr. Reynard’s subsequent request for review, and Mr. Reynard appealed to this Court on November 21, 2014. ECF No. 3. Because the records from the Plaintiffs health care providers persuasively demon[532]*532strate the Plaintiffs disability, the Court now reverses the ALJ’s decision and remands solely for the calculation of benefits.

BACKGROUND

Mr. Reynard is a 48-year old male who has been diagnosed with Posh-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, severe obstructive sleep apnea, morbid obesity, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and degenerative disc disease and compression fractures in the lower back. The plaintiffs physical impairments have caused him to have chronic lower back pain and reduced mobility, and his psychological impairments have produced a range of maladaptive symptoms affecting plaintiffs social functioning and energy level.

Nevertheless, the ALJ found that the plaintiff was not disabled under the definition of that term in the Social Security Act (“Act”). In reaching that conclusion, the ALJ applied a five-step sequential evaluation process established by the Social Security Administration for determining whether an individual is disabled. 20 C.F.R. §§ 404.1520; 416.920. The Second Circuit has “tracked this methodology ... as follows:

1. The Commissioner considers whether the claimant is currently engaged in substantial gainful activity.
2. If not, the Commissioner considers whether the claimant has a ‘severe impairment’ which limits his or her mental or physical ability to do basic work activities.
3. If the claimant has a ‘severe impairment,’ the Commissioner must ask whether, based solely on medical evidence, claimant has an impairment listed in Appendix 1 of the regulations. If the claimant has one of these enumerated impairments, the Commissioner will automatically consider him disabled, without considering vocational factors such as age, education, and work experience.
4. If the impairment is not “listed” in the regulations, the Commissioner then asks whether, despite the claimant’s severe impairment, he or she has residual functional capacity to perform his or her past work.
5. If the claimant is unable to perform his or her past work, the Commissioner then determines whether there is other work which the claimant could perform. The Commissioner bears the burden of proof on this last step, while the claimant has the burden on the first four steps.”

Shaw v. Chater, 221 F.3d 126, 132 (2d Cir. 2000).

Applying this approach, the ALJ first found that the plaintiff was not engaged in substantial gainful activity. Next, the ALJ found that the plaintiff had a medically determinable impairment that is severe or a combination of such impairments, such that the impairment limits the plaintiffs ability to perform basic work activities. Specifically, the ALJ found that the plaintiff had the following severe impairments: degenerative disc disease, obstructive sleep apnea, obesity, COPD, an affective disorder and an anxiety-related disorder. AR 19.

At the third step, the ALJ evaluated whether the plaintiffs impairment or combination of impairments is of a severity to meet or medically equal the criteria of an impairment listed in 20 C.F.R. Part 404, Subpart P, Appendix 1. The ALJ concluded that the plaintiffs impairments in this case did not rise to the level of a listed impairment. With regard to his physical impairments, the ALJ found that the plaintiffs degenerative disc disease, which caused his lower back pain, did not meet or equal the criteria of listing 1.04 because [533]*533“there is no evidence of nerve root compression characterized by neuro-anatomic distribution of pain, limitation of motion of the spine, motor loss accompanied by sensory or reflex loss, and positive straight-leg raising, or spinal arachnoiditis, or lumbar spinal stenosis resulting in pseudoclau-dication.” AR 19. The ALJ did not consider the effects of obesity specifically on the plaintiffs disturbance of the musculoskele-tal system, although he did consider it in relation to the plaintiffs overall combination of impairments. The ALJ concluded that the addition of obesity to the sum of his other impairments would not result in a finding of disability under step three because the plaintiff “remains fully weight bearing and does not have abnormal neurological functioning.” AR 19.

With regard to the plaintiffs obstructive sleep apnea and COPD, the ALJ found that the plaintiffs condition did not rise to the level of those disorders listed under listings 3.09 and 12.02. He also found the plaintiffs conditions did not meet or equal the criteria of listing 3.02. Section 3 of the appendix relates to respiratory disorders, including COPD, with 3.02 providing criteria for chronic respiratory disorders due to any cause (with a non-relevant exception) and 3.09 providing criteria related to chronic pulmonary hypertension. Whether the severity of the impairment rises to the level of a disability is determined by specific test results related to (in relevant part) pulmonary artery pressure, forced expiratory volume or forced vital capacity. Section 3.00(P)(2) provides that sleeping disorders will be evaluated under the listings of the affected body systems, and 12.02 provides criteria relevant to neuro-cognitive disorders. The ALJ’s conclusions regarding the limited impact of plaintiffs sleep apnea on his cognitive functioning and mood disturbance cross-references his evaluation of the evidence pertinent to plaintiffs other psychological disorders.

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Bluebook (online)
220 F. Supp. 3d 529, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 151694, 2016 WL 6476959, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/reynard-v-colvin-vtd-2016.