Williams v. Astrue, Case number 4:10cv0886 TCM
| Decision Date | 01 September 2011 |
| Docket Number | Case number 4:10cv0886 TCM |
| Parties | EBRUM WILLIAMS, Plaintiff, v. MICHAEL J. ASTRUE, Commissioner of Social Security, Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Missouri |
This 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) action for judicial review of the final decision of Michael J. Astrue, the Commissioner of Social Security (Commissioner), denying the application of Ebrum Williams (Plaintiff) for disability insurance benefits (DIB) under Title II of the Social Security Act (the Act), 42 U.S.C. § 401-433, and for supplemental security income (SSI) under Title XVI of the Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1381-1383b, is before the undersigned for a final disposition pursuant to the written consent of the parties. See 28 U.S.C. § 636(c). Plaintiff has filed an opening brief and reply brief in support of his complaint; the Commissioner has filed a brief in support of his answer.
Plaintiff applied for DIB and SSI in November 2005, alleging he was disabled as of July 2003 by throat cancer, chronic back pain, bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome, depression, andhigh blood pressure.1 (R.2 at 10.) His applications were denied initially and after a hearing held in October 2007 before Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) Robert E. Ritter. (Id. at 7-73.) The Appeals Council then denied Plaintiff's request for review, thereby effectively adopting the ALJ's decision as the final decision of the Commissioner. (Id. at 1-3.)
Plaintiff, represented by counsel, testified at the administrative hearing.
Plaintiff was 43 years old at the time of the hearing, 5 feet 5 inches tall, and weighs 135 pounds. (Id. at 31, 40.) He quit school when in the ninth grade. (Id. at 32.) He never obtained a General Equivalency Degree (GED), nor has he received any other training. (Id.) He is married, but separated, and lives with his oldest son. (Id. at 41.) He has been living with, and off, his son since 2004. (Id. at 45.)
Plaintiff started working washing cars when he was twelve or thirteen years old. (Id.) He last worked in July 2003 filling oxygen tanks at a medical facility. (Id. at 32-33.) This job took less than a week to learn. (Id. at 33.) Any job Plaintiff has held has been unskilled and required the use of his hands and back. (Id. at 33-34.)
Plaintiff first sustained injuries in 1995 when he hurt his low back trying to move a bale of clothes. (Id. at 34.) He never fully recovered and had to be moved to light duty. (Id. at 35.)He had another injury to his low back that affected his bending, stooping, lifting, and similar motions. (Id.)
In approximately 2000, he injured his right shoulder. (Id. at 36, 38.) He cannot raise it over his head. (Id. at 36, 46.) He has not had an operation for his back or shoulder because of a lack of funds. (Id. at 36.)
In his last job, he injured his two hands by constantly having to screw and unscrew valves. (Id. at 36-37.) The company paid for an operation. (Id. at 37, 39.)
Plaintiff further testified that he can not sit or stand for too long, walk too far, bend over, or lift things. (Id. at 37.) Sometimes his "hands work okay"; sometimes they do not. (Id.) His physical limitations make him depressed. (Id. at 38.) He cries almost every day. (Id. at 50.) He has no money to see a doctor about his depression. (Id. at 51.) He is in constant pain. (Id. at 38.) His back pain is normally an eight on a ten point scale, with ten being the most pain he could stand. (Id. at 42.) He takes an over-the-counter medication, Doan's pills, and sleeps on a heating pad. (Id.) He was once given Oxycontin at an emergency room. (Id.) This lowered his pain to a six or seven. (Id.) He had had an x-ray taken of his back, but never heard the results. (Id. at 43.) A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of his neck revealed that the neck problem was related to his shoulder problem. (Id. at 44.)
Also, he has a condition called Barrett's Esophagus. (Id. at 38.) His throat swells up occasionally. (Id.)
His pain prevents him from sleeping well at night. (Id. at 47.)
The only thing that Plaintiff can do during the day is watch television. (Id. at 48.) He cannot do any chores and has no social outlets except attending church on Sundays. (Id. at 48, 49.) He makes himself sandwiches to eat. (Id. at 48-49.) He drinks approximately six beers and smokes six cigarettes a week. (Id. at 49.)
Plaintiff testified that his back problems alone keep him from working. (Id. at 51.) The longest he can sit or stand is ninety minutes. (Id. at 52.) The longest he can walk is thirty minutes. (Id.) The heaviest thing he can lift is a glass of water. (Id. at 53.) He has not attempted to lift anything in the past thirty days. (Id. at 62.) He no longer drives a car because he cannot stay focused. (Id. at 53.) There is no job he could do eight hours a day, five days a week. (Id. at 57.) He applied for work in 2006 with "a temporary company." (Id. at 58.) He was sent out on one job, but could not do it. (Id.) What he told a vocational rehabilitation counselor, Mr. England, in 2006 is still true. (Id. at 61.)
The documentary record before the ALJ included forms Plaintiff completed as part of the application process, documents generated pursuant to his applications, records from health care providers, and assessments of his physical and mental residual functional capacities.
When applying for DIB and SSI, Plaintiff completed a Disability Report. (Id. at 120-27.) Throat cancer, chronic back pain, bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome, depression, and high blood pressure limit his ability to work by preventing him from being able to sit or stand for long, causing him to be depressed, preventing him from bending or lifting, and causing him to be in constant pain. (Id. at 121.) These impairments first bothered him on July 2, 2003, andprevented him from working that same day. (Id.) His medications include Lisinopril for high blood pressure, Tramadol for pain, and Carafate3 for throat cancer. (Id. at 125.) None had any side effects. (Id.)
The month after Plaintiff filed his applications, his twenty-four year old son completed a Function Report on his behalf. (Id. at 105-12.) Plaintiff lives with him. (Id. at 105.) He helps Plaintiff bathe, dress, get fed, and get ready for bed. (Id. at 105.) Before his injuries, Plaintiff "was able to get around like a healthy person." (Id. at 106.) Now, he does not sleep well and is always in pain. (Id.) He lays out Plaintiff's toiletries and medicine. (Id. at 107.) He cooks enough food so that Plaintiff merely has to microwave a meal. (Id.) Plaintiff cannot do any chores. (Id.) Plaintiff has no hobbies and does not spend time with other people. (Id. at 109.) Plaintiff's impairments affect his abilities to lift, sit, climb stairs, squat, kneel, bend, stand, use his hands, reach, complete tasks, get along with others, walk, remember, and concentrate. (Id. at 110.) Plaintiff can only lift five pounds and walk for half a block before having to stop and rest for thirty minutes. (Id.) He cannot pay attention for long. (Id.) Plaintiff was once fired for hitting a supervisor with orange juice. (Id. at 111.) He does not like change, cries and talks to himself, and screams at others. (Id.)
Completing a form requesting information about any work performed after his alleged disability onset date, Plaintiff reported that he worked for Spherion Staffing for twenty hours a week beginning on July 5, 2002; for Human Resource Staffing, LLC, from June 10 to June22, 2004; and for Kessler Containers, Ltd., on July 10, 2004. (Id. at 91-97.) He stopped working at the last two jobs because of his medical condition. (Id at 92-93.) A disability onset date of July 2, 2003, was recommended due to his unsuccessful work attempts. (Id. at 98.)
Plaintiff completed a Disability Report - Appeal form after the initial denial of his applications. (Id. at 148-55.) His back pain had become worse since he completed the earlier disability report. (Id. at 149.) His pain made it hard for him to concentrate. (Id.) Also, he has been depressed and had suicidal ideation. (Id.) He had seen Jerome Levy, M.D., for his back and Wayne Stillings, M.D., for his depression. (Id. at 150.) In addition to the three medications listed on the earlier report, he was taking cyclobenzaprine for his back spasms and hydrocodone for pain. (Id. at 152.) These also had no side effects. (Id.)
The relevant medical records before the ALJ are summarized below in chronological order and begin when Plaintiff was admitted to DePaul Health Center on June 29, 2003, after experiencing chest pain with shortness of breath. (Id. at 244, 263.) Das Sundeep, M.D., examined Plaintiff the next day. (Id. at 234-36, 239-40, 259-60.) He noted Plaintiff's social history of smoking a pack of cigarettes a week and drinking a twelve-pack of beer on weekends. (Id. at 234.) On examination, he described Plaintiff as pleasant and in no acute distress, alert and oriented times three, and with a normal mood and affect. (Id.) He also noted that Plaintiff's first two sets of troponins4 were negative; the third was slightly elevated. (Id.)Another set was to be checked. (Id. at 235.) If that was increasing, Plaintiff was to be ruled out for a myocardial infarction and, if necessary, scheduled for a stress test and a gastrointestinal (GI) consultation. (Id.) The consulting GI physician, Robyn Haithcock, Sr., D.O., noted a social history of smoking and drinking a six-pack of beer of weekends. (Id. at 249.) He also noted the emergency room report describing Plaintiff as intoxicated when he came in. (Id.) An endoscopy revealed a mass in the distal part of the esophagus, gastritis, and a duodenal erosion. (Id. at 237-38, 247-48.) The mass was biopsied, but could not be safely removed. (Id. at 237.) The biopsy revealed Barrett's esophagus.5 (Id. at 245.) Consequently, Plaintiff was started on a proton pump inhibitor and Carafate flurry; he improved...
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