Waddell v. Commissioner of Social Security

CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Ohio
DecidedFebruary 13, 2023
Docket2:22-cv-00439
StatusUnknown

This text of Waddell v. Commissioner of Social Security (Waddell v. Commissioner of Social Security) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Ohio primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Waddell v. Commissioner of Social Security, (S.D. Ohio 2023).

Opinion

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO WESTERN DIVISION

PATRICIA W.1 Case No. 2:22-cv-439

Plaintiff, v. Bowman, M.J.

COMMISSIONER OF SOCIAL SECURITY,

Defendants.

MEMORANDUM OF OPINION AND ORDER

Plaintiff Patricia W. filed this Social Security appeal in order to challenge the Defendant’s finding that she is not disabled. See 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). Proceeding through counsel, Plaintiff presents three claims of error, all which the Defendant disputes. As explained below, the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ)’s finding of non-disability should be AFFIRMED, because it is supported by substantial evidence in the administrative record. The parties have consented to the jurisdiction of the undersigned magistrate judge. See 28 U.S.C. §636(c). I. Summary of Administrative Record On October 17, 2017, Plaintiff filed an application for Disability Insurance Benefits (“DIB”) and Supplemental Security Income (“SSI”) alleging she became disabled on September 27, 2013, based upon a combination of physical and mental impairments. After her claim was denied initially and upon reconsideration, Plaintiff requested an evidentiary hearing before an Administrative Law Judge (“ALJ”). At a telephonic hearing held on May 21, 2020, Plaintiff appeared with counsel and gave testimony before ALJ

1 The Committee on Court Administration and Case Management of the Judicial Conference of the United States has recommended that, due to significant privacy concerns in social security cases, federal supplemental telephonic hearing was held on September 1, 2020, wherein Plaintiff appeared with counsel. The ALJ also heard testimony from Paul Dhiman, M.D. an impartial medical expert an Mary Beth Kopar, a vocational expert. On November 30, 2020, the ALJ issued a written decision, concluding that Plaintiff was not disabled. (Tr. 10-25). 2 Plaintiff was born on January 2, 1968 and was 45 years old on her alleged onset date of disability. She has a twelfth-grade education and past relevant work as a cashier/checker. (Tr. 23). Based upon the record and testimony presented at the hearing, the ALJ found that Plaintiff had the following severe impairments: “depression,

somatoform disorder, hypertension, obesity, osteoarthritis, degenerative disc disease, COPD.” (Tr. 13). The ALJ concluded that none of Plaintiff’s impairments alone or in combination met or medically equaled a listed impairment in 20 C.F.R. Part 404, Subp. P, Appendix 1. Despite these impairments, the ALJ determined that Plaintiff retains the RFC to perform light work subject to the following limitations: • Sitting is limited to no more than 6 hours total in an 8-hour day; • Standing is limited to no more than 30 minutes at a time, and no more than

2 Since Plaintiff received an unfavorable ALJ decision in a prior disability claim in April 2016, the ALJ considered the RFC finding set forth in that prior decision pursuant to Drummond v. Commissioner of Social Security, 126 F.3d 837 (6th Cir. 1997), and Acquiescence Ruling (AR) 98-4(6) (Tr. 10-11, 17). Notably, In Drummond, the Sixth Circuit held that “[w]hen the Commissioner has made a final decision concerning a claimant’s entitlement to benefits, the Commissioner is bound by this determination absent changed circumstances” 126 F.3d at 842. In response to Drummond, the agency issued AR 98-4(6), which incorporates the Court’s holding. AR 98-4(6) explains that, under Drummond, “[w]hen adjudicating a subsequent disability claim with an unadjudicated period arising under the same title of the [Social Security] Act as the prior claim, adjudicators must adopt such a finding from the final decision by an ALJ or the Appeals Council on the prior claim in determining whether the claimant is disabled with respect to the unadjudicated period unless there is new and material evidence relating to such a finding or there has been a change in the law, regulations or rulings . . . .” Id. (emphasis added). Here, the ALJ found that new and material evidence warranted a greater degree of functional limitation than previously found by the prior ALJ (Id.). Thus, the ALJ did not formally adopt in their entirety the prior findings from the prior ALJ’s decision (Id.).

2 • Walking is limited to no more than 30 minutes at a time, and nor more than 2 hours total in an 8-hour day; • Navigation of steps and ramps is limited to no more than occasionally; • No climbing of ropes, scaffolds, ladders; • Overhead work is limited to no more than frequently; • No concentrated exposure to extremes of cold, hear, wetness, humidity and pulmonary irritants such as gasses, fumes, dust and odors; • No exposure to workplace hazards defined as: no exposure to open flames, no exposure to inherently dangerous moving or mechanical parts that are closer than an arm’s length from the individual, and no exposure to unprotected heights; • Work should be confined to noncomplex, routine, and repetitive tasks on a sustained basis; • No more than occasional and cursory interactions with the public; • No more than occasional interactions with supervisors and co-workers; • Work should be performed in a stable work environment where the workplace remains generally the same from day to day; • Absences no more than 1 time per month; • Off task 5-10% of the workday. (Tr. 16). Based upon her RFC and testimony from the vocational expert, the ALJ concluded that Plaintiff could not perform her prior work, but could perform other jobs that exist in significant numbers in the national economy, including order caller, marker, and electric worker. (Tr. 24). Accordingly, the ALJ determined that Plaintiff is not under disability, as defined in the Social Security Regulations, and is not entitled to DIB and/or SSI. Id. The Appeals Council denied Plaintiff’s request for review. Therefore, the ALJ’s decision stands as the Defendant’s final determination. On appeal to this Court, Plaintiff argues that the ALJ erred by: (1) not providing a summary of Plaintiff’s testimony for the benefit of the medical expert who was not present to hear Plaintiff’s testimony; (2) failing to properly accommodate Plaintiff’s vertigo and edema in her RFC; and (3) failing to find Plaintiff’s dizziness and vertigo to be a severe impairment at Step Two of the Sequential Evaluation. Upon close analysis, I conclude that Plaintiff’s arguments are not well-taken.

3 A. Judicial Standard of Review To be eligible for benefits, a claimant must be under a “disability.” See 42 U.S.C. §1382c(a). Narrowed to its statutory meaning, a “disability” includes only physical or mental impairments that are both “medically determinable” and severe enough to prevent the applicant from (1) performing his or her past job and (2) engaging in “substantial gainful activity” that is available in the regional or national economies. See Bowen v. City of New York, 476 U.S. 467, 469-70 (1986). When a court is asked to review the Commissioner’s denial of benefits, the court’s first inquiry is to determine whether the ALJ’s non-disability finding is supported by

substantial evidence. 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.

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Waddell v. Commissioner of Social Security, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/waddell-v-commissioner-of-social-security-ohsd-2023.