Golembiewski v. Barnhart

• Decision Date: 03 February 2003
• Docket Number: No. 02-1286.,02-1286.
• Citation: 322 F.3d 912
• Parties: Michael E. GOLEMBIEWSKI, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Jo Anne B. BARNHART, Commissioner of Social Security, Defendant-Appellee.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Seventh Circuit

322 F.3d 912

Michael E. GOLEMBIEWSKI, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Jo Anne B. BARNHART, Commissioner of Social Security, Defendant-Appellee.

No. 02-1286.

United States Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit.

Argued December 17, 2002.

Decided February 3, 2003.

Opinion Published March 12, 2003.^*

Before BAUER, CUDAHY, and COFFEY, Circuit Judges.

PER CURIAM.

Michael Golembiewski, a former automobile radiator repairman, applied for disability insurance benefits at the age of 39 asserting that he could not work because of back problems and epileptic seizures. An administrative law judge denied benefits after finding that Golembiewski was not disabled when his eligibility for insurance expired, and the Social Security Administration's appellate council declined review. Golembiewski then brought this action in the district court, which upheld the agency's decision, and Golembiewski appeals. Because the ALJ insufficiently explained why he discredited Golembiewski's testimony, mischaracterized the medical evidence, and ignored evidence of Golembiewski's disability, we remand the case to the agency for further proceedings.

Golembiewski's medical records document a history of ailments stretching back to his childhood. As a child, Golembiewski had to have his right leg partially amputated because of a birth defect, and during early adulthood he began to have epileptic seizures on account of head injuries sustained during an accident. Because of his seizures, Golembiewski in 1992 was referred to the Mayo Clinic, where Dr. Elson So, a neurologist, prescribed the anti-convulsant Tegretol. The medication successfully controlled Golembiewski's epilepsy until 1994, when he returned to the clinic suffering frequent spells. In response, Dr. So instructed Golembiewski to increase his Tegretol dosage (and to abstain from alcohol), and by the end of 1994, Dr. So later reported, the seizures again were under control

The event that led to Golembiewski's alleged disability occurred in November 1995. Golembiewski crashed his pickup truck into another truck, hit his head, injured his back, and again began having daily seizures. Upon examination at the Mayo Clinic, Dr. So suggested that Golembiewski's new seizures were related to the trauma (though he did not identify a precise cause). Dr. So also reported that following the accident Golembiewski complained of bowel and bladder urgency. And an MRI taken at the clinic revealed additional problems with Golembiewski's back, including a small area of myelomlacia (softening of the spinal cord) in his middle back, degenerative disk disease in his lower back, and two disk extrusions— one between two cervical vertebrae and the other between two thoracic vertebrae. Although the thoracic extrusion did not affect the spinal cord, the cervical extrusion did, and Dr. So thought that this deformity could explain the neck discomfort felt by Golembiewski after his car accident.

To combat the new seizures, Dr. So prescribed another anticonvulsant, Depakote, and within a few weeks the spells had stopped. With respect to the bowel and bladder problems, urologists at the clinic did not identify a neurological cause— though after finding two kidney stones, they instructed Golembiewski to drink more water. Golembiewski's back and neck pain, however, persisted for the next two years, and in August 1997 he went to Parkview Memorial Hospital in Fort Wayne, Indiana, complaining of "severe pain." There an emergency care center physician delivered Demoral intramuscularly, prescribed other painkillers, and scheduled Golembiewski to see Dr. Stephen Schroeder, a neurosurgeon. Dr. Schroeder found that Golembiewski had crepitance (crinkling) in his neck, limited flexion when performing low back motions, pain when performing straight leg raises from a supine position, and patchy hypesthesia (diminished sensitivity) on his left arm and chest. Reviewing an MRI taken earlier in February 1996, Dr. Schroeder also observed significant spondylosis (stiffening of the vertebrae) and a potential disk rupture between Golembiewski's diseased cervical vertebrae. After looking at another MRI from March 1996, Dr. Schroeder further saw disk degeneration in the lower back with probable "lumbosacral herniation."

In light of Golembiewski's significant soft tissue pain, Dr. Schroeder approved a course of physical therapy at Adams County Memorial Hospital in Decatur, Indiana. Unfortunately, physical therapy provided no relief, and in both February and April 1998, Golembiewski returned to Adams County reporting back strain. That May Golembiewski also had another car accident after suffering a seizure. During this period Golembiewski reported that he was having seizures daily, and an electroencephalogram (EEG) performed in October 1998 showed abnormal electrical activity in Golembiewski's brain that was consistent with partial seizure disorder.

In January 1999 Golembiewski reported additional problems to his family practitioner, Dr. Michael Person. Golembiewski complained that he had developed numbness, weakness, and tingling in his upper extremities, making him unable to use his hands to hold onto objects. In addition, the following month Dr. Person noted that Golembiewski's right leg was draining fluid from a red lesion above his prosthesis. And in April 1999 Dr. Person again reported that Golembiewski was suffering from severe neck pain. That month Golembiewski also had another accident; he burned his left foot with a high-power pressure washer at his radiator shop, and his left leg became infected.

After burning his foot, Golembiewski applied for disability benefits. Dr. Sam Davis, a physician employed by the State of Indiana, then assessed Golembiewski's functional capacity to work and concluded that Golembiewski could perform several work-related tasks. Specifically, Dr. Davis determined that Golembiewski occasionally could lift up to twenty pounds, that he could stand and walk for two hours and sit for six hours (with breaks) during an eight-hour workday, and that he could use hand and foot controls without limitation. Dr. Davis also found that Golembiewski occasionally could balance, stoop, and crouch, but could never kneel, crawl, or climb stairs or ladders. According to Dr. Davis, Golembiewski needed to avoid machinery, heights, and slick or uneven surfaces because of his seizures.

The ALJ held a hearing in June 2000 at which Golembiewski testified and presented his medical records (many of which we have not discussed because they are redundant or irrelevant). At the hearing Golembiewski explained that he had problems walking because his prosthesis fit poorly, that he suffered a seizure once or twice a week lasting between four and five minutes, and that until as recently as December 1998 he had suffered seizures every four days. Golembiewski also testified that he had pain in his middle and lower back, that he could sit comfortably only for five minutes at a time, and that he periodically dropped items from his right hand.

The ALJ also solicited testimony from a vocational expert. The vocational expert explained that someone of Golembiewski's age, education, and work experience—who could not work around machinery because of seizures—would be able to work as an assembler, inspector, packager, or cashier. But when asked about the number of jobs for someone with Golembiewski's impairments, who could not sit or stand for more than five minutes, the vocational expert did not suggest any available jobs. He instead responded that a "selective job placement" would be required.

The ALJ denied Golembiewski's application for benefits. In his decision the ALJ first noted that Golembiewski was insured for disability benefits only through December 31, 1998, and that he needed to demonstrate a disability while he remained insured. During that time period, the ALJ concluded, Golembiewski's seizures were controlled by medication, he suffered neck and back pain, and his MRIs showed some disk degeneration and mild bulging, but no herniations. The ALJ also determined that despite Golembiewski's seizures, disk degeneration, and chronic pain, he retained the capacity for light work. After finding Golembiewski's own testimony not credible "for the reasons set forth in the body of the decision," the ALJ determined from the vocational expert's testimony that Golembiewski could hold jobs as an assembler, packager, inspector, and cashier. Engaging in the familiar five-step analysis used to evaluate disability claims, 20 C.F.R. § 404.1572, the ALJ concluded that Golembiewski (1) did not have a job, (2) had a severe impairment, (3) did not have an impairment or combination of impairments listed in the agency's regulations, (4) could not return to his job repairing radiators, (5) but could work a significant number of jobs in the national economy. Golembiewski then appealed to the agency's appeals council, but his request for review was denied, making the ALJ's decision the final decision of the Commissioner. 20 C.F.R. § 404.981.

We will uphold the Commissioner's decision if it is supported by substantial evidence and is free of legal error. 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). This is a deferential but not entirely uncritical standard, Scott v. Barnhart, 297 F.3d 589, 593 (7th Cir.2002), for the Commissioner's decision cannot stand if it lacks evidentiary support or an adequate discussion of the issues, Brindisi v. Barnhart, 315 F.3d 783, 785 (7th Cir.2003). On appeal Golembiewski argues that the decision lacks the detail needed to permit meaningful review for three independent reasons: (1) the ALJ insufficiently explained why he discredited Golembiewski's testimony; (2) the ALJ mischaracterized the medical evidence discussed in his decision; and (3) the ALJ ignored significant other evidence that supported Golembiewski's claim. We consider these arguments in turn.

Golembiewski's first contention relies on the principle that ALJs must explain why they find an...