Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-azd-3_15-cv-08257/USCOURTS-azd-3_15-cv-08257-1/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 863
Nature of Suit: Social Security - DIWC/DIWW (405(g))
Cause of Action: 42:405 Review of HHS Decision (DIWC)

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WO 

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA 

Elizabeth Achtschin, 

Plaintiff, 

v. 

Commissioner of Social Security 

Administration, 

Defendant. 

No. CV-15-08257-PCT-DGC

ORDER 

 Plaintiff Elizabeth Achtschin moves for reconsideration (Doc. 20) of this Court’s 

July 6, 2016 order, which affirmed the Commissioner’s denial of her application for 

disability benefits (Doc. 18). The Court will deny the motion. 

 Achtschin argues that reconsideration is appropriate in light of the Ninth Circuit’s 

recent decision in Attmore v. Colvin, No. 13-36048, 2016 WL 3563596 (9th Cir. June 30, 

2016). Attmore held that substantial evidence did not support the ALJ’s finding of 

medical improvement. Id. at *4. In so holding, the appellate court explained that “an 

ALJ cannot simply pick out a few isolated instances of improvement over a period of 

months or years but must interpret reports of improvement with an understanding of the 

patient’s overall well-being and the nature of her symptoms.” Id. at *4 (citations and 

internal formatting omitted). The court further explained that the plaintiff’s expression of 

a desire to return to school “was not itself a sign of improvement” when she never 

followed through with these plans. Id. at *5. 

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Attmore does not undermine the Court’s decision. Although the Commissioner 

argued that Achtschin’s symptom testimony should be discounted because Achtschin 

failed to account for her improvement with treatment, the Court explicitly declined to 

affirm the ALJ’s credibility finding on that basis. See Doc. 18 at 4 (“the Commissioner 

argues that the ALJ was justified in discounting Achtschin’s credibility based on: (1) her 

history of work cessation for nonmedical reasons; (2) her history of abusing Ambien; (3) 

her work as a housekeeper; and (4) evidence that her symptoms were manageable with 

medication. Because the Court concludes that the first two reasons are specific, clear, 

and convincing reasons for discounting Achtschin's credibility, it need not consider the 

Commissioner’s other reasons.”). Nor did the Court consider evidence that Achtschin 

intended to return to school in affirming the credibility determination. See id. at 3-5. 

 The Commissioner also argued that the ALJ was justified in discounting Dr. 

Parson’s opinion because it failed to account for Achtschin’s improvement with 

treatment. Again, the Court declined to affirm on this basis. Doc. 18 at 7 (“The Court 

must determine whether any of the following constitutes a specific and legitimate reason 

for discounting Dr. Parsons’s opinions . . . (3) Dr. Parsons’s failure to consider the 

efficacy of medication in controlling Achtschin’s symptoms; or (4) inconsistency 

between the opinions and Dr. Parsons’s treatment notes. Because the Court concludes 

that the last reason is a specific and legitimate reason for discounting Dr. Parsons’s 

opinions, it need not consider the ALJ’s other reason.”). 

 Achtschin makes one final argument: she contends that the Court erred in 

affirming the ALJ’s decision to discount Dr. Parsons’s opinions. Doc. 20 at 2. She 

provides three record citations to show that Dr. Parsons documented chronic suicidal 

ideation and mental impairments resulting in panic attacks and emergency room visits. 

Id. (citing A.R. 390, 585-86, 630). Because this argument either was or could have been 

made in the original briefing, it is not a valid basis for reconsideration. Nor it is 

persuasive. Achtschin’s citations show that Achtschin was struggling with her bipolar 

disorder, but they do not undermine the Court’s holding, which was based on a finding 

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that Dr. Parsons’s notes could reasonably be described as inconsistent with her opinions, 

not on a finding that the notes were devoid of evidence of debilitating symptoms. See 

Doc. 18 at 8 (noting that “Dr. Parsons’s treatment notes . . . consistently report 

cooperative and engaged attitude, good eye contact, clear and coherent speech, logical 

and directed thought process, good judgment, and unremarkable cognition,” and 

concluding that “it was reasonable for the ALJ to assign less weight to the opinions” 

based on “the discrepancy between the dire picture painted by Dr. Parsons’s opinions and 

the more nuanced picture painted by her treatment notes”). Achtschin has not borne her 

burden to show that the Court’s holding was “manifest error,” as would be required to 

obtain reconsideration. L.R. Civ. 7.2(g). 

 IT IS ORDERED that the motion for reconsideration (Doc. 20) is denied.

 Dated this 13th day of July, 2016. 

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