Turner v. Comm'r Of Soc. Sec., 09-35080.

• Decision Date: 02 August 2010
• Docket Number: No. 09-35080.,09-35080.
• Citation: 613 F.3d 1217
• Parties: James L. TURNER, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. COMMISSIONER OF SOCIAL SECURITY, Defendant-Appellee.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Ninth Circuit

613 F.3d 1217

James L. TURNER, Plaintiff-Appellant,

v.COMMISSIONER OF SOCIAL SECURITY, Defendant-Appellee.

No. 09-35080.

United States Court of Appeals,Ninth Circuit.

Submitted Feb. 1, 2010. ^*

Filed Aug. 2, 2010.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED.

Alan Stuart Graf, Alan Stuart Graf, PC, Summertown, TN, for the appellant.

Willy M. Le, Social Security Administration Office of the General Counsel, Assistant Regional Counsel, Seattle, WA, for the appellee.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Oregon, Michael R. Hogan, District Judge, Presiding. D.C. No. 6:07-cv-06158-HO.

Before: PAMELA ANN RYMER, RONALD M. GOULD and JAY S. BYBEE, Circuit Judges.

Opinion by Judge BYBEE; Dissent by Judge GOULD.

OPINION

BYBEE, Circuit Judge:

James Turner appeals the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of the Commissioner of Social Security upholding a denial of Disability Insurance Benefits under Title II of the Social Security Act. Turner contends that the Administrative Law Judge (“ALJ”) did not give sufficient weight to the opinion of one of his doctors, improperly discredited his own testimony, and failed to adequately address his Veteran Affairs (“VA”) disability rating. Because substantial evidence supports the ALJ's decision and the ALJ committed no legal error, we affirm.

I

Turner suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. In 2002, he filed an application for Title II disability insurance benefits, 42 U.S.C. §§ 416(i), 423(d), claiming that he was unable to work on July 3, 1990, due to gunshot wounds, chronic back pain, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Both parties agree that Turner must show that he was disabled on or before December 31, 1990, in order to qualify for benefits under Title II of the Social Security Act.

A

In 1990, Turner was forty-four years old. During his service in the Army, he sustained gunshot and shrapnel wounds in Vietnam to his left arm, temple, foot, and leg. Between 1985 to 1992, Turner underwent several medical examinations through the VA. In 1985, Dr. Heide, a psychiatrist, examined Turner and diagnosed him with probable post-traumatic stress disorder. According to Dr. Heide, Turner avoided the subject of Vietnam, expressed that he felt paranoia in crowds, and stated that he was easily startled by loud noises, but denied feeling depressed, sad, or hopeless. Dr. Heide reported that Turner was pleasant and cooperative and opined that Turner's functional ability was fair. In 1986, Dr. Aflatooni, a psychiatrist, examined Turner and diagnosed him with post-traumatic stress disorder and atypical depression. Turner reported that he experienced nightmares and flashbacks about Vietnam. He stated that he was depressed, angry, forgetful, and uncertain about the future. Dr. Aflatooni reported that Turner was cooperative and pleasant, showed no anxiety or irritability, made eye contact, and was fairly well oriented to time, place, and person.

In 1990, Dr. Koogler, also with the VA, administered a psychiatric examination to Turner. During the examination, Turner reported that he had daily thoughts about Vietnam and some flashbacks triggered by helicopters, but reported no nightmares. Turner explained that he had difficulty concentrating, did not read, avoided crowds, slept sporadically, and disliked unexpected noises. He expressed paranoia about the government and losing his compensation. Dr. Koogler observed that Turner was oriented, had a normal intellect, and displayed good judgment. At the end of the report, Dr. Koogler included a “summary,” in which he stated that Turner was disabled from a back injury and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. Dr. Koogler noted that Turner had maintained himself “without severe problems with his [post-traumatic stress disorder] by isolating himself from society and living out in the country.”

In 1992, two years after the time relevant for Turner's disability determination, Dr. Koogler examined Turner again and noted that there had been no change in Turner's mental status since their last meeting. Dr. Koogler observed that Turner “continue[d] to have a severe back problem[ ] and hobbles in and out of his chair....” Dr. Koogler noted that Turner had not received treatment, but that he was in “good spirits and fe[lt] like his anger [wa]s controlled because he [wa]s left alone.” Later that year, John McFarland, a social worker, examined Turner. McFarland noted that Turner chose to live an isolated life, trading his labor on a ranch for lodging. McFarland noted:

The veteran was somewhat guarded during this interview. He states he feels that one result of this interview would be that his compensation would be cut off.... Regarding employability, the veteran is doing just about all that he can do presently. He would not be able to tolerate any employment which required any sort of structure, answering to bosses, or dealing with people.

Turner received VA disability ratings in 1987, 1997, and 2002. In 1987, the VA assigned a post-traumatic stress disorder disability rating of thirty percent. This rating indicated “occupational and social impairment with occasional decrease in work efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform occupational tasks (although generally functioning satisfactorily, with routine behavior, self-care, and conversation normal).” In 1997, the VA maintained the thirty percent rating. In 2002, the VA raised Turner's post-traumatic stress disability rating to 100 percent and made it retroactive to the year 1997.

B

In 2002, Turner filed with the Social Security Administration for disability benefits due to his gunshot wounds, chronic back pain, and post-traumatic stress disorder. At his hearings, ¹ Turner testified that he was disabled due to back pain and post-traumatic stress disorder. He stated that he could only walk a half mile at a time, sit fifteen to twenty minutes at a time, and lift up to forty pounds. Turner testified that he “had no mental problems” but that he did not trust anybody and liked to be alone. He stated that he took Motrin for his back pain, tried to avoid doctors, and obtained treatment only when the VA called to see him. During a regular day, Turner performed various household chores and work on the ranch, including feeding cattle, fixing holes in fences, and assisting in rounding and branding cattle.

At Turner's second hearing, a medical expert, Dr. Crossen, who had not personally examined Turner, but who had reviewed his medical records and prior hearing transcripts, confirmed that Turner had post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. Dr. Crossen pointed to the fact that during the time that Turner claimed to be unable to work, he successfully lived by himself, responsibly cared for a ranch, and formed a relationship that led to marriage. Dr. Crossen observed that the record contained “little evidence” that Turner was completely incapacitated besides Turner's own subjective complaints.

Using the required five-step sequential framework for determining whether a claimant is disabled, see 20 C.F.R. § 404.1520, the ALJ determined that Turner had not engaged in substantial gainful activity since his alleged onset date, that Turner had a severe impairment (namely, post-traumatic stress disorder), and that the impairment did not meet or equal the requirements of any listed impairment that would demonstrate presumptive disability under 20 C.F.R. pt. 404, subpt. P, app. 1. The ALJ then found that Turner had the residual functional capacity to work at any exertion level, but that he would be limited to simple, repetitive tasks, require an environment without a lot of background activity, not be able to perform work involving public contact, and work best alone. Using this residual functional capacity, a vocational expert testified that an individual with Turner's experience and background could find jobs such as a cleaner, laundry sorter, or folding machine operator in the national economy. Because Turner could perform some jobs in the national economy, the ALJ determined that Turner was not disabled under the Social Security Act. The Commissioner affirmed the ALJ's decision, and the district court granted summary judgment in favor of the Commissioner. Turner timely appealed.

II

On appeal, Turner alleges that he is disabled solely due to his post-traumatic stress disorder; he does not challenge the ALJ's rejection of his physical disability complaints. Turner argues that the ALJ erred in determining his functional capacity in three ways: (1) by not giving sufficient weight to Dr. Koogler's 1990 examination; (2) by rejecting Turner's subjective complaints; (3) by inadequately addressing the disability findings of the VA. We examine each in turn. ²

A

Turner first argues that the ALJ improperly rejected the medical findings of his treating doctor, Dr. Koogler. “As a general rule, more weight should be given to the opinion of a treating source than to the opinion of doctors who do not treat the claimant.... [T]he Commissioner must provide clear and convincing reasons for rejecting the uncontradicted opinion of an examining physician.... [T]he opinion of an examining doctor, even if contradicted by another doctor, can only be rejected for specific and legitimate reasons....” Lester v. Chater, 81 F.3d 821, 830-31 (9th Cir.1995) (quotation marks omitted). Turner argues that Dr. Crossen's opinion contradicted Dr. Koogler's report. It is not clear, however, that Dr. Koogler actually concluded that Turner was disabled from post-traumatic stress disorder, nor is it clear that Dr. Crossen or the ALJ actually rejected Dr. Koogler's report. What Dr. Koogler said, in the briefest of summaries, was that Turner was “disabled from a back injury he sustained in 1980.” But the back injury is not the basis for Turner's claim; he alleges that he is disabled because of his post-traumatic stress disorder. But with respect to post-traumatic stress disorder, Dr....