Taylor v. Berryhill

387 F. Supp. 3d 883
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Illinois
DecidedJune 11, 2019
DocketNo. 1:18-cv-02259
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 387 F. Supp. 3d 883 (Taylor 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
Taylor v. Berryhill, 387 F. Supp. 3d 883 (illinoised 2019).

Opinion

Elaine E. Bucklo, United States District Judge

Plaintiff Denise Taylor ("Taylor") brought this action against Nancy A. Berryhill, Acting Commissioner of the Social Security Administration (the "Commissioner"), *887for review of the denial of her applications for disability insurance benefits ("DIB") under Title II of the Social Security Act, and supplemental security income benefits ("SSI") under Title XVI of the Social Security Act. Taylor now moves to reverse the Commissioner's decision. She claims that the Commissioner's determination that she is not disabled, and thus is not entitled to DIB or SSI, was not supported by substantial evidence and is contrary to the law. For the following reasons, Taylor's motion is granted in part and denied in part. This case is remanded to the Social Security Administration for proceedings consistent with this opinion.

I.

On April 15, 2015, Taylor filed her applications for DIB and SSI. R. 21. In these two applications, Taylor claimed that she had been disabled since February 14, 2015, around when she underwent surgery and developed a spinal epidural abscess. Id. at 21, 71. Taylor's medical records indicated that she also had neuropathy, a fractured toe, osteoarthritis of the thumb, an ACL tear, hypertension, anemia, and depression. Id. at 24. Taylor worked as an operating room technician for approximately 23 years before her February 2015 surgery. Id. at 21, 51. During 2016, she worked part-time in a medical sterile processing department. Id. at 50-54.

Taylor's applications were denied on November 4, 2016, and upon reconsideration on January 29, 2016. R. 21. Taylor thereafter requested a hearing, which took place on January 26, 2017 before an administrative law judge (the "ALJ"). Id. She testified at that hearing as did a vocational expert. Id. The ALJ denied Taylor's claims on June 22, 2017, finding she was not disabled as defined in the Social Security Act. Id. at 31.

In reaching her decision, the ALJ employed the five-step inquiry set out in 20 C.F.R. §§ 404.1520 and 416.920. That inquiry requires a determination of "(1) whether the claimant is currently employed; (2) whether the claimant has a severe impairment; (3) whether the claimant's impairment is one that the Commissioner considers conclusively disabling; (4) if the claimant does not have a conclusively disabling impairment, whether he can perform his past relevant work; and (5) whether the claimant is capable of performing any work in the national economy." Kastner v. Astrue , 697 F.3d 642, 646 (7th Cir. 2012) (citation omitted). These steps are applied sequentially. Craft v. Astrue , 539 F.3d 668, 673-74 (7th Cir. 2008). The claimant bears the burden of proof on steps one through four; the burden of proof shifts to the Commissioner for step five. Young v. Barnhart , 362 F.3d 995, 1000 (7th Cir. 2004). To reach a finding that the claimant is disabled, the ALJ must reach an affirmative answer at step three or step five. Craft , 539 F.3d at 673-74.

At step one, the ALJ determined that Taylor had not engaged in substantial gainful activity since February 14, 2015, her claimed onset date. R. 23. Taylor had some earnings in 2016 but was not then employed as defined in 20 C.F.R. § 404.1571 et seq. and § 416.971 et seq. Id.

At step two, the ALJ found that Taylor had one severe impairment: status post spinal cord injury. R. 23-24. Taylor's other physical impairments were found to be non-severe: neuropathy, status post fractured toe, joint osteoarthritis, an ACL tear, hypertension, and anemia. Id. at 24. The ALJ further determined that Taylor's depression was not severe and caused no more than minimal limits on Taylor's ability to perform basic mental work activities. Id.

*888In assessing Taylor's depression at step two, the ALJ considered four functional areas, also known as the four "Paragraph B" criteria for mental functioning. See 20 C.F.R. § Pt. 404, Subpt. P, App. 1. The ALJ determined that Taylor had: (1) "no limitations in understanding, remembering, or applying information", (2) "no limitations in interacting with others," (3) "no limitations in concentrating, persisting, or maintaining pace," and (4) "mild limitations in adapting or managing oneself." R. 24. The ALJ explained that these determinations were not themselves an assessment of Taylor's residual functional capacity ("RFC") to perform her past work, but that her assessment at step four would reflect these determinations. Id. at 25.

The ALJ supported these functional area determinations with a summary of Taylor's reported symptoms and relevant medical opinions. In June 2015, Taylor reported that she finished things she started to do, followed written instructions well, followed spoken instructions very well, and read three times a week. Id. at 24, 267-73. In September 2015, Taylor reported that she did not finish things she started to do or follow instructions well, but she also reported external stressors at that time, including financial issues. Id. at 24, 283.

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Bluebook (online)
387 F. Supp. 3d 883, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/taylor-v-berryhill-illinoised-2019.