Murphy v. Sullivan
| Citation | 953 F.2d 383 |
| Decision Date | 07 January 1992 |
| Docket Number | No. 91-1857,91-1857 |
| Parties | , Unempl.Ins.Rep. (CCH) P 16457A Annie MURPHY, Appellant, v. Louis W. SULLIVAN, Secretary of Health & Human Services, Appellee. |
| Court | United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (8th Circuit) |
Denver L. Thornton, El Dorado, Ark., for appellant.
Pamela M. Wood, Karen J. Sharf, Gayla Fuller, and J. Michael Fitzhugh, U.S. Attys., Dallas, Tex., for appellee.
Before ARNOLD, BEAM, and LOKEN, Circuit Judges.
The claimant, Annie Murphy, seeks supplemental security income benefits (SSI) for various ailments which she claims keep her from working. Both the state agency and the Social Security Administration denied the claimant's request. On March 28, 1989, a hearing was held before an administrative law judge (ALJ), who determined that the claimant was not disabled within the meaning of the Social Security Act. Review of this decision was denied by the Appeals Council on September 28, 1990. A complaint was filed on November 26, 1990, seeking a review of the Secretary's final decision. The District Court 1 held on summary judgment that there was substantial evidence to support the Secretary's decision. The claimant has now appealed to this Court, again challenging the Secretary's decision. We affirm.
When reviewing the ALJ's 2 decision, we must determine "whether there is substantial evidence on the record as a whole to support" that decision. Hutsell v. Sullivan, 892 F.2d 747, 748-49 (8th Cir.1989). "Substantial evidence is relevant evidence that a reasonable person might accept as adequate to support a conclusion." Id. at 749. This substantial-evidence test is "more than a mere search of the record for evidence supporting the Secretary's findings." Gavin v. Heckler, 811 F.2d 1195, 1199 (8th Cir.1987). The analysis must take into account "whatever in the record fairly detracts from [the] weight" of the evidence supporting the ALJ's decision. Cruse v. Bowen, 867 F.2d 1183, 1184 (8th Cir.1989). "[T]he court must also take into consideration the weight of the evidence in the record and apply a balancing test to evidence which is contradictory." Gavin, 811 F.2d at 1199.
With these guidelines in mind, we turn to the evidence presented in this case. The claimant, a 5'5"', 200 lb. woman with an eighth-grade education, filed her claim for SSI benefits on May 4, 1988. She claimed to have been under a disability since March of 1988 due to a back injury, hypertension, and hemorrhoids. At her hearing, she also detailed problems with her neck, arms, legs, eyes, and bowel functions. She listed her previous job experience as an employee in a light-fixture factory and a poultry plant, as well as an assistant in a juvenile home and a cashier.
A number of her ailments appear to be relatively minor and easily treatable. The claimant failed to provide any evidence which indicated that the hemorrhoid problem interfered with her ability to work. The bowel-control problem that she detailed at the hearing appeared to be easily controlled through the maintenance of a proper diet. In fact, her testimony indicated that through proper eating habits, she has been able to control these accidents. Transcript at 46-47. She also complained of high blood pressure; however, the reading of 170/90, which has been her highest recorded reading to date, indicates only moderate hypertension. In addition, she was prescribed medication to help control her blood pressure. Finally, the claimant stated that she had problems with dry eyes and her hands becoming red. Transcript at 40, 47. She presented no evidence, however, as to how these problems would prevent her from working.
The claimant's most serious complaint revolves around the injury to her back. This injury was originally sustained in 1943 when the claimant was struck in the back by a piece of metal while working at a shipyard. In recent years, she has developed pain in her neck and shoulder areas, as well as numbness and tingling in her arms and legs. These ailments have become more pronounced since the death of her mother in 1986. 3 Among the difficulties she attributes to these injuries are problems with driving and walking, inability to do yard work, and problems in performing activities such as writing and sewing. She also testified that her ailments made it difficult for her to stretch her arms out from her body and above her head. Transcript at 44-45. Despite these problems, however, she is able to drive, walk to nearby houses, do house work, go grocery shopping, and cook.
The medical evidence presented was fairly limited. The claimant was examined by Dr. Donna Zahniser on May 19, 1988, in conjunction with her application for SSI benefits. This examination revealed that there was normal curvature of the spine and a normal range of motion of the spine and all the joints and extremities. The neurological examination found no evidence of muscle weakness, muscle deterioration, or sensory problems. The claimant's walk and coordination were likewise normal. The examination indicated that she had hypertension and hemorrhoids (according to the history she gave Dr. Zahniser) and that she most likely had thoracic spine arthritis (arthritis located in the chest region of the spine). Transcript at 99-106.
After this examination, the claimant visited her personal physician, Dr. Berry Moore. He gave her prescriptions for Ibuprofen and Motrin, as well as various medications for her high blood pressure, circulation, dry eyes, and an unspecified infection. Transcript at 93. Dr. Moore also referred the claimant to Dr. Dillard Denson for the purpose of further examination of her back. Dr. Denson's examination revealed some loss of nerve activity in the arm muscles, which indicated nerve-root compression (pressure) in the vertebrae in her neck. Accompanying x-rays also indicated a possibility that the claimant was experiencing cervical spondylosis (abnormal fusion of two vertebrae or deterioration in her back). The accompanying nerve tests, however, indicated that the conduction velocities for both median nerves were within normal limits. 4 Transcript at 109-111.
In addition to the medical evidence, the claimant also had two witnesses testify on her behalf. They were her son, Stacy Dolden, and her daughter, Penny Gardner. Both witnesses gave testimony which generally corroborated the claimant's subjective complaints. They could not, however, provide the ALJ with any additional medical evidence. Finally, the claimant described her financial difficulties to the ALJ, stating that she had no income and could not afford medical treatment. Transcript at 38-39, 48. She also stated that her son was unemployed. Transcript at 48. She did not provide any indication that she had attempted to secure low-cost medical care.
Upon review of the record as a whole, we think substantial evidence supports the Secretary's decision to deny the claimant SSI benefits. The ailments detailed by Mrs. Murphy, taken separately or as a group, simply do not rise to a level sufficient to indicate a disability. The evidence fails to reveal how claimant's complaints of dry eyes or red hands would impede her ability to function in the workplace. The hemorrhoid problem, which she noted on her application for benefits, is also not sufficient to merit an award. 5 The claimant's bowel-control problem also lacks the requisite severity to merit an award, as the evidence revealed that the accidents occur infrequently and can be controlled through the maintenance of a proper diet. Finally, the claimant's high blood pressure, which registered 170/90 at its highest recorded point, fails to rise above the moderate level. Such a reading, even without medication, "does not qualify as a severe impairment under the Secretary's regulations, because it has not resulted in any end organ damage (i.e., to the heart, eye, brain, or kidney)." Brown v. Heckler, 767 F.2d 451, 453 (8th Cir.1985).
Despite her protestations to the contrary, the ALJ also determined that the claimant's back injury was not of sufficient severity to render her disabled. The ALJ stated that claimant's probable thoracic spine arthritis did not equal the impairments detailed in the regulations. See 20 C.F.R., Pt. 404, Subpt. P, App. 1, 1.00 et seq. Additionally, the ALJ found that the claimant's subjective complaints of pain, numbness, and physical limitations were not credible. These decisions are supported by the evidence.
The medical evidence presented to the ALJ during the claimant's hearing consisted solely of the examination...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Englerth v. Colvin
...617; Guilliams v. Barnhart, 393 F.3d 798, 801 (8th Cir. 2005); McClees v. Shalala, 2 F.3d 301, 302 (8th Cir. 1993); Murphy v. Sullivan, 953 F.2d 383, 384 (8th Cir. 1992). Instead, the district court must simply determine whether the quantity and quality of evidence is enough so that a reaso......
-
Johnston v. Colvin
...617; Guilliams v. Barnhart, 393 F.3d 798, 801 (8th Cir. 2005); McClees v. Shalala, 2 F.3d 301, 302 (8th Cir. 1993); Murphy v. Sullivan, 953 F.2d 383, 384 (8th Cir. 1992). Instead, the district court must simply determine whether the quantity and quality of evidence is enough so that a reaso......
-
Frieden v. Colvin
...617; Guilliams v. Barnhart, 393 F.3d 798, 801 (8th Cir. 2005); McClees v. Shalala, 2 F.3d 301, 302 (8th Cir. 1993); Murphy v. Sullivan, 953 F.2d 383, 384 (8th Cir. 1992). Instead, the district court must simply determine whether the quantity and quality of evidence is enough so that a reaso......
-
Stephens v. Astrue
...617; Guilliams v. Barnhart, 393 F.3d 798, 801 (8th Cir. 2005); McClees v. Shalala, 2 F.3d 301, 302 (8th Cir. 1993); Murphy v. Sullivan, 953 F.2d 383, 384 (8th Cir. 1992). Instead, the district court must simply determine whether the quantity and quality of evidence is enough so that a reaso......
-
Case survey
...his allegations of a disabling impairment. Id. , citing Gwathney v. Chater , 104 F.3d 1043, 1045 (8th Cir. 1997); Murphy v. Sullivan , 953 F.2d 383, 386 (8th Cir. 1992). § 204.7 SOCIAL SECURITY ISSUES ANNOTATED Work History and Credibility § 204.7 a. First Circuit A district court in Connec......
-
Issue Topics
...rejected a claimant’s argument that her financial hardship justified her failure not to pursue additional treatment. Murphy v. Sullivan , 953 F.2d 383, 386-87 (8th Cir. 1992). According to the court, if the claimant was unable to follow a prescribed regimen of medication and therapy to comb......
-
Assessment of disability issues
...Clark v. Shalala , 28 F.3d 828, 831 n. 4 (8 th Cir. 1994); Johnson v. Bowen , 866 F.2d 274, 275 (8 th Cir. 1989); Murphy v. Sullivan , 953 F.2d 383, 386-87 (8 th Cir. 1992). (3) In Shimkus v . Apfel , 72 F. Supp.2d 1056, 1060 (S.D. Iowa 1999), the court held that the ALJ appropriately disco......
-
Issue topics
...rejected a claimant’s argument that her financial hardship justified her failure not to pursue additional treatment. Murphy v. Sullivan , 953 F.2d 383, 386-87 (8th Cir. 1992). According to the court, if the claimant was unable to follow a prescribed regimen of medication and therapy to comb......