Doe v. Heckler

• Decision Date: 13 December 1983
• Docket Number: Civ. A. No. M-83-2218.
• Citation: 576 F. Supp. 463
• Parties: John DOE, Robert Seawright, Donald E. Dill, Charles W. Boyd, Dorothy J. Messenger, Gloria Washington, and Yvonne Dunlap, Individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated v. Margaret M. HECKLER, Secretary, United States Department of Health and Human Services.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Maryland

576 F. Supp. 463

John DOE, Robert Seawright, Donald E. Dill, Charles W. Boyd, Dorothy J. Messenger, Gloria Washington, and Yvonne Dunlap, Individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated v. Margaret M. HECKLER, Secretary, United States Department of Health and Human Services.

Civ. A. No. M-83-2218.

United States District Court, D. Maryland.

December 13, 1983.

Dennis W. Carroll and Ethel Zelenske, Administrative Law Center, Legal Aid Bureau, Inc., Baltimore, Md., for plaintiffs.

J. Frederick Motz, U.S. Atty., D. Maryland, Glenda G. Gordon, Asst. U.S. Atty., Baltimore, Md., Diane C. Moskal, Regional Atty., Michael P. Meehan and Thomas A. Dougherty, Jr., Asst. Regional Attys., Dept. of Health and Human Services, Philadelphia, Pa., Randolph W. Gaines, A. George Lowe and Gabriel L. Imperato, Dept. of Health and Human Services, Baltimore, Md., for defendant.

JAMES R. MILLER, Jr., District Judge.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

I. Background

On June 27, 1983, plaintiffs, John Doe and Richard Seawright, filed a putative class action challenging the actions of the Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HSS) in terminating the plaintiffs' social security benefits under the Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 401 et seq. (Paper No. 3).

On July 15, 1983, John Doe was reinstated to the disability benefit rolls. On September 16, 1983, the defendant filed a motion to remand Robert Seawright's case for a de novo hearing. (Paper No. 27). Finding that the Secretary had established good cause for the remand, this court, on September 30, 1983, granted that motion. (Paper No. 38).

In the meantime, Charles Boyd, Dorothy Messenger, Gloria Washington and Donald Dill sought leave to intervene in this case. (Paper No. 24). Because the applicant intervenors met the requirements of Fed.R. Civ.P. 24(a)(2), their motion was granted. (Paper No. 35).

At the hearing held on November 18, 1983, the plaintiffs sought leave to file a second complaint in intervention in order that at least one plaintiff would represent those members of the class who had not fully exhausted their administrative remedies. The defendant, on December 9, 1983, filed an objection to the motion for leave to intervene. (Paper No. 43). This court now grants the motion of Yvonne Dunlap to intervene as of right for the same reasons set forth in this court's previous order granting Washington, Boyd, Messenger, and Dill the right to intervene. (Paper No. 35). Since the claims of the original plaintiffs are now moot, those five intervenors must be considered, for class certification purposes, the named plaintiffs in this case. In fact, in their complaints in intervention, the applicant intervenors sought leave to intervene individually and on behalf of all other similarly situated. (Paper Nos. 36 & 42).

II. Requested Definition of the Class

The plaintiffs originally moved for certification of a class composed of all persons in the State of Maryland:

"(a) Who have applied for disability benefits under the Social Security Act;

"(b) Who have been found by the Secretary to be under a disability as defined in the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 416(i) and determined to be eligible for monthly disability benefits under the Act;

"(c) Whose disability has been determined by the Secretary to have ceased in a decision issued on or after the 60th day prior to the filing of this action;

"(d) Whose disability has been determined to have ceased based on medical factors;

"(e) Who have had or will have their monthly benefit checks stopped; and

"(f) Who have had their disability benefits terminated without any finding that either (i) there has been a change in their medical condition since the time that the Secretary first determined that they were under a disability as defined in the Act or (ii) that the original favorable decision was erroneous."

(Paper No. 6).

On November 10, 1983, the plaintiffs sought leave to amend the definition of the proposed class to include a requirement that class members, after being notified that the Secretary was reviewing their continued disability and/or proposed to terminate their benefits, either:

(a) filed the questionnaire, SSA-454aF4, asserting that they were still disabled, or

(b) filed a request for reconsideration following the formal decision to terminate their benefits.

(Paper No. 40). The defendant, at the hearing, raised no objection to the motion. Such an amendment, slightly limiting the original breadth of the requested class, is proper in light of the fact that this court would have no jurisdiction in any event over any purported class member who had not "presented a claim" to the Secretary. Mathews v. Eldridge, 424 U.S. 319, 96 S.Ct. 893, 47 L.Ed.2d 18 (1976); McDaniels v. Heckler, 571 F.Supp. 880 (D.Md.1983). Leave to amend is granted.

III. Procedural Status of the Named Plaintiffs

The proposed class is represented by five plaintiffs. The parties have stipulated to the facts surrounding the procedural history in four of the named plaintiffs' cases.

Donald Dill, a 57 year old man, was found to be disabled under the Social Security Act on June 28, 1978. He was advised by letter of June 30, 1982 that his disability had ceased as of June, 1982. He appealed that decision, and on April 28, 1983, the ALJ held that his disability continued. On its own motion, the Appeals Council reversed the ALJ's decision, and held in an opinion announced on August 5, 1983, that Dill's disability ceased in June, 1982. Thus, Mr. Dill has fully exhausted his administrative remedies.

The decision of the Appeals Council was not made on the basis that Mr. Dill's condition had improved. The Council concluded that Dill's original condition had not "worsened." (Ex. 2 at 5, Stipulations of Fact, Paper No. 41).

Dorothy Messenger is 41 years old. She was found to be disabled in March, 1969. By letter of April 9, 1982, Messenger was notified that her disability had ceased. She was denied benefits after her request for reconsideration was denied. In April, 1983, after a hearing in February, the ALJ determined that she was no longer entitled to disability benefits. On September 2, 1983, the Appeals Council affirmed the ALJ's decision. Messenger has exhausted all administrative remedies.

In reviewing the ALJ's decision to terminate Messenger's benefits, there appears to be no finding of medical improvement. The ALJ concluded that her medical condition "would not prevent her from performing her prior work activity...." (Ex. 3 at 6, Stipulations of Fact, Paper No. 41).

Gloria Washington, now 30 years old, began receiving benefits in November, 1979. On July 16, 1982, Washington was advised that her disability had ceased. She appealed that decision. The same ALJ who had granted her benefits in 1978, unfavorably reviewed her case and decided that her disability had ceased. The Appeals Council affirmed the ALJ's decision on July 19, 1983. Washington has exhausted her administrative remedies.

It appears to this court that the ALJ did not make a finding of medical improvement in Washington's case. In his findings he concluded that the medical evidence showed that the claimant continued to suffer from the original disability, but that she was no longer "disabled." (Ex. 6 at 8, Stipulations of Fact, Paper No. 41).

Charles Boyd began to receive disability benefits on April 7, 1981. He was notified in September, 1982 that his disability had ceased. The ALJ upheld that determination in a decision dated July 21, 1983. Boyd's appeal to the Appeals Council was unsuccessful. On November 1, 1983, the Council affirmed the ALJ's decision denying Boyd's claim for continuation of disability benefits. Boyd has exhausted his administrative remedies.

Again, it appears to this court that the ALJ did not find that Boyd's medical condition had improved. The ALJ considered evidence of headache, depression, and myocardial infarction — the same medical problems experienced by the claimant in 1981. The ALJ concluded that the same medical problems were no longer severe. (Ex. 8 at 7, Stipulations of Fact, Paper No. 41).

Yvonne Dunlap began receiving disability benefits in October, 1976 due to mental retardation, personality disorders and schizophrenia. She was notified on September 7, 1982 that her disability had ceased. A hearing was held on July 11, 1983, and the ALJ determined that Ms. Dunlap's disability had ceased. (Paper No. 42, Ex. 1). She has appealed the termination of her benefits to the Appeals Council, but no decision has yet been rendered in her case.

IV. Legal Analysis

a. Class Certification

Each member of a purported plaintiff class, in a suit under the Social Security Act, must meet the jurisdictional requirement of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) of having received a final decision from the Secretary. See Weinberger v. Salfi, 422 U.S. 749, 763-64, 95 S.Ct. 2457, 2465-66, 45 L.Ed.2d 522 (1975). The Supreme Court has defined the two elements of finality. First, each member must have presented a claim for benefits to the Secretary. Second, each class member normally must have exhausted his administrative remedies. Mathews v. Eldridge, 424 U.S. 319, 328, 96 S.Ct. 893, 899, 47 L.Ed.2d 18 (1976).

In denying the defendant's motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction (Paper No. 22), this court, on September 9, 1983, determined that each member of the proposed class had presented a claim for continued benefits to the Secretary and that the exhaustion requirement was waivable and had been waived in this particular case. Therefore, all the named plaintiffs have met the jurisdictional requirements for bringing a class action.

The plaintiffs assert in their motion for class certification (Paper No. 6) that the proposed class meets the requirements of Fed.R.Civ.P. 23(a). The defendant argues that the plaintiffs do not meet three of the four requirements of Rule 23(a) — numerosity, commonality, and typicality. She...