Angel U. v. Comm'r
| Decision Date | 06 September 2018 |
| Docket Number | CIVIL ACTION FILE NO. 1:16-cv-03606-AJB |
| Parties | ANGEL U., Plaintiff, v. COMMISSIONER, SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION, Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Northern District of Georgia |
Plaintiff Angela U. ("Plaintiff") brought this action pursuant to §§ 205(g) and 1631(c) of the Social Security Act ("the Act"), 42 U.S.C. §§ 405(g) and 1383(c)(3), to obtain judicial review of the final decision of the Commissioner of the SocialSecurity Administration ("the Commissioner") denying her application for Supplemental Security Income ("SSI") and Disability Insurance Benefits ("DIB").3 For the reasons set forth below, the undersigned AFFIRMS the final decision of the Commissioner.
On January 23, 2012, Plaintiff filed her application for DIB and SSI alleging a disability onset date of June 1, 2009. [Record (hereinafter "R") R185]. These claims were denied initially on July 17, 2012 and upon reconsideration on November 8, 2012. [R86-90]. Thereafter, Plaintiff filed a written request for a hearing. [R96]. Plaintiff appeared and testified at a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge ("ALJ") onOctober 24, 2014, where she was represented by counsel, and a vocational expert ("VE") testified. [R41-78].
Plaintiff subsequently amended her alleged onset date to June 11, 2013. [R276]. On February 23, 2015, the ALJ denied Plaintiff disability benefits. [R23-33]. Plaintiff then filed an appeal with the Appeals Council ("AC"),4 which appeal was denied on July 28, 2016, making the ALJ's decision the final decision of the Commissioner. [R1-6].
Plaintiff filed this action on September 26, 2016, seeking review of the Commissioner's decision. [Doc. 1]. The answer and transcript were filed on June 9, 2017. [Docs. 12-13]. On July 11, 2017, Plaintiff filed a brief in support of her petition for review of the Commissioner's decision, [Doc. 16], and on August 7, 2017, the Commissioner filed a response in support of the decision, [Doc. 17], to which Plaintiff replied on August 21, 2017, [Doc. 18]. The matter is now before the Court upon the administrative record, and the parties' pleadings and briefs,5 and it is accordingly ripe for review pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §§ 405(g) and 1383(c)(3).
Plaintiff's brief claims that the ALJ made the following errors:
1. The ALJ failed to fully and fairly develop the record;
2. The AC improperly denied Plaintiff review; and
3. The ALJ's finding is not supported by substantial evidence.
Plaintiff was born in November 1972 and was 36 years old on the alleged onset date. [R185]. Plaintiff completed high school. [R198]. Plaintiff previously worked as a dental hygienist and consultant, but stopped working on June 1, 2009. [R197-98]. She alleged disability due to back and neck pain and mental illness. [R197].
Plaintiff testified that she got an associates degree in the medical field and became a registered dental hygienist in 1987. [R49]. She testified that she worked as a dental hygienist from 1995 until 2009. [Id.]. She also testified that from 2000 to 2003, she worked as a dental consultant which was "more of a sales based position for product that had to go into the offices and consulting based on their need to set up astructured program from what they needed for their . . . hygienist program for treating patients." [R50].
Plaintiff testified that she stopped working in 2009 because she had previously been working part-time but, after she began to work full-time due to an employee departure, she "started having situations" where she lost her temper, was late to work due to "getting up and the medications," and having neck and back problems trying to do her job. [R53]. Plaintiff stated that, after an incident in which she lost her temper, the owner of the practice where she worked told her that they understood she had a mental illness, but that she "just can't do this." [Id.].
Plaintiff testified that her anxiety and depression would get triggered at work when she was not well rested, was late because of lack of rest and being medicated, heard children screaming in the waiting room, skipped lunch and hydration, or handled a large patient volume with few breaks due to the commission-based compensation structure. [R54-55].
Plaintiff explained that after the hygienist job, she took a phone-based job for 30-to 32-hours a week for five weeks. [R56]. She stated that the difficulty she experienced in that position was the pressure to make many calls. [Id.]. Plaintiff also testified that she worked in a retail position at a car dealership, but the owner wasconcerned about her hands visibly shaking, and after she failed to make any sales working three and half days a week over five weeks, she was let go. [R57]. Plaintiff believed that she was unsuccessful in that position because she felt under pressure and had anxiety from remembering numbers and negotiating with customers. Plaintiff opined her condition has worsened since then. [R57-58]. Specifically, her anxiety and racing thoughts affected her sleep and she is depressed. [R58]. She testified that these conditions were exacerbated by financial stressors, a brief period of homelessness, and her father's hospitalization. [R58-59].
Plaintiff testified that, on an average day, she wakes up around 9:30 or 10:30 a.m., groggy from taking Trazodone6 to help her sleep. [R60-61]. She then eats; takes her medications; lists things to sell on eBay (to make money); does housework like light cleaning, vacuuming, mopping, and sweeping for short periods of time; tries to plan groceries and get meals ready; goes outside to spend time with animals in good weather; reads for short periods of time; watches television; goes online; and talks to her father and best friend on the phone about her anxiety. [R61-63]. She further testified that she can independently bathe, dress, and take care of her personal hygienebut, once a week, will go through a two-or three-day period where she does not, and this has gotten worse over the last year. [R62-63]. Plaintiff testified that she gets out of the house on a regular basis—running errands or seeing family twice a month—but is at home for a couple days at a time. [R63-64]. She testified that she no longer swims when she spends time with her family at the lake, due to her back and legs, and her mental health causes difficulties being with her mother, who also has untreated mental health issues. [R64-65]. Plaintiff confirmed that she can drive and has a valid driver's license without restrictions. [R75].
Upon being questioned about whether she could do a job that involved sitting, simple, routine tasks, no high paced production aspects, and few interactions with others for forty hours a week, Plaintiff responded that she would have trouble getting up in the morning to get there on time, stay focused, and not become manic. [R66]. Plaintiff testified that, in addition to grogginess, her medications cause her to shake (making it difficult to do things that require precision in her hands), upset her stomach, and cause nausea, dehydration, and headaches (due to Lexapro).7 [R67] Plaintiff's attorney introduced additional medical records at her hearing that are in the record as an unsigned, undated medical source opinion questionnaire, [R43, 442]. At the hearing, the ALJ noted the record was incomplete and, apparently Plaintiff's attorney supplied her with the full record, as the ALJ referred to a brief medical narrative from Tamika Perkins, a counselor that Plaintiff testified she saw once or twice a month for about two years at Avita, where she was treated for a total of six years. [R44-45]; see also infra n.12. Plaintiff's attorney also submitted a medical source opinion from Amanda Dutton. [R45]. He explained that Plaintiff would amend her onset date and the ALJ stated that she would not make a decision until she heard from the attorney regarding an amended onset date and reviewed "whatever post-hearing submissions he provides." [R46].
Consultative examiner Scott Duncan, Psy. D., evaluated Plaintiff on October 19, 2012. [R405]. His examination involved a clinical and historical interview with Plaintiff, a mental status examination, and a review of eight pages of Disability Adjudication Services ("DAS") records. [Id.]. Plaintiff reported that "she left her last job because they cut her hours and paid only commission per clients." [R406]. Shereported seeing a psychiatrist and therapist consistently for the last seven years at Avita and her only psychiatric hospitalization was in 2002 for "severe clinical depression and suicide." [Id.]. She reported that in 2003 she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder type II and is currently on Lithium,8 Wellbutrin,9 and Trazodone (at night), which she stated "overall work pretty well." [Id.]. Plaintiff stated that [Id.].
On mental status examination, Dr. Duncan noted that Plaintiff had good eye contact, no unusual psychomotor movements, euthymic mood that was sad at times, adequate insight and judgment, unimpaired immediate and short-term memory, coherent and fluent speech, denied hallucinations or delusions, showed no signs of psychosis, and was cooperative and oriented to self, time and place. [R406-07].Dr. Duncan diagnosed Plaintiff with bipolar disorder I, most recent episode, mild, and ascribed a GAF score10 of 70.11 [R407]. He further elaborated that she had "no significant difficulty effectively maintaining attention and sustained concentration . . ....
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