*

After examining the briefs and the record, we have concluded that oral

argument is unnecessary. Thus, the appeal is submitted on the briefs and the

record. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2).

United States Court of Appeals

For the Seventh Circuit

Chicago, Illinois 60604

Submitted October 31, 2007*

Decided November 6, 2007

Before

Hon. RICHARD A. POSNER, Circuit Judge

Hon. DIANE P. WOOD, Circuit Judge

Hon. DIANE S. SYKES, Circuit Judge

No. 07-1771

TAMERA L. RASMUSSEN,

Plaintiff-Appellant,

v.

MICHAEL J. ASTRUE,

Defendant-Appellee.

Appeal from the United States

District Court for the Central

District of Illinois.

No. 05-1315

Joe Billy McDade,

Judge.

O R D E R

Tamera Rasmussen applied for Disability Insurance Benefits and

Supplemental Security Income, claiming that she cannot work because she suffers

from chronic back and knee pain, anxiety, depression, borderline intellectual

functioning, bone spurs in her heels, obesity, fibromyalgia, and a heart condition. 

NONPRECEDENTIAL DISPOSITION

To be cited only in accordance with

 Fed. R. App. P. 32.1
No. 07-1771 Page 2

After her claim was administratively denied, an administrative law judge conducted

a hearing. The ALJ found that Rasmussen’s impairments did not render her

disabled, and the Social Security Appeals Council denied Rasmussen’s request for

review. The district court affirmed, finding that the ALJ’s decision was supported

by substantial evidence. Rasmussen appeals, and we also affirm. 

At the hearing before the ALJ, Rasmussen provided testimonial and

documentary evidence to support her claim. She stated that the primary reason she

cannot work is her disabling knee and back pain. Rasmussen testified that her

medications—Alprazolam and Methadone, which treat her anxiety and pain

symptoms—make her drowsy but are otherwise effective. She has a heart condition

from using the diet drug Fen-Phen, but Rasmussen said this causes no problems for

her aside from occasionally affecting her breathing at night. She testified that her

pain severely limits her mobility. For example, at any one time she can sit for only

up to half an hour, stand for only five minutes, walk for only a couple of minutes,

and lift only six pounds. Nevertheless, Rasmussen also reported regularly

vacuuming, dusting, cooking, and sweeping. 

Rasmussen also described her educational and work history. She does not

have a high school degree, but she completed the eleventh grade in a specialeducation program. Over the years, Rasmussen worked in a variety of unskilled

and semi-skilled jobs, including dishwashing and cooking at a restaurant, managing

a cheese shop, serving food in a nursing home, grooming dogs, hand-packaging

surgical gloves in a factory, and cashiering at Goodwill, a gas station, and a video

store. At the time of the hearing, Rasmussen had not worked in nearly one year,

having left her last job as a cashier because she could not stand or stay awake for

her entire four-to-six-hour shift. 

To support her testimony, Rasmussen provided medical evidence

documenting her physical and mental health. Her medical records show that she

has consistently sought treatment for back, knee, and heel pain over the past nine

years. Her treating physicians, however, have uniformly found only mild physical

evidence corroborating Rasmussen’s complaints, diagnosing at most some disc

degeneration in her spine and a bone spur on her heel. Rasmussen also underwent

several surgeries in 1999, including a hysterectomy, a breast lumpectomy, and

surgery for gallstones and urinary incontinence. Her medical records do not reveal

any continued complaints related to these surgeries. Rasmussen’s primary-care

physician has prescribed drugs to treat her anxiety and depression, although

Rasmussen has not seen a mental-health specialist.

Rasmussen’s medical records also document numerous emergency-room visits

at various hospitals—nearly 50 ER visits between 1998 and 2001 alone—seeking

treatment for pain and prescriptions for Vicodin, to which she eventually developed

an addiction. She additionally sought prescriptions for Vicodin from several 
No. 07-1771 Page 3

primary-care doctors. Rasmussen justified her requests for Vicodin by explaining

that she had injured herself performing a wide range of demanding activities

including mowing her lawn, climbing a ladder, and painting her mother’s house.

The ALJ considered psychological and physical evaluations requested by the

state agency. Dr. Spence, the evaluating psychologist, diagnosed Rasmussen with

dysthymia (a mild form of depression), borderline intellectual functioning, and

anxiety disorder. Dr. Spence found that, even given these psychological limitations,

Rasmussen could follow instructions, handle funds, and complete short tasks over

an extended period so long as she could do so in a low-stress environment. The

medical examiner, Dr. Katchen, noted that Rasmussen had some nerve pain and

moderate weakness in her left leg that could be aggravated by extended movement. 

Dr. Katchen also observed that Rasmussen has a systolic ejection murmur, but no

cardiac decompensation, and that she suffers from obesity and chronic shortness of

breath. Dr. Katchen concluded that although she could not find any physical

abnormality explaining Rasmussen’s back or knee pain, Rasmussen did have mild

to moderate difficulty walking, hopping, and squatting. 

A vocational expert testified at the hearing regarding the employment

prospects for a hypothetical person with Rasmussen’s education and work

experience and the capacity to perform medium or light work requiring only simple,

routine, low-stress tasks. The vocational expert opined that such a person could

perform Rasmussen’s past jobs as a hand packager or a cashier. The vocational

expert also testified that many Illinois jobs satisfied Rasmussen’s work restrictions. 

However, he admitted that if Rasmussen’s claims of disabling pain were believable,

she would not be able to work at these jobs. The vocational expert did not consider

whether Rasmussen’s medications might change his assessment.

After considering all the proffered evidence, the ALJ concluded that

Rasmussen was not disabled. In so finding, the ALJ applied the five-step analysis

described in 20 C.F.R. § 404.1520(a)(4)(i)-(v) to find that Rasmussen had not

engaged in substantial gainful employment since the alleged onset of her disability

(step one); that her combined physical and mental conditions constituted a severe

impairment (step two); but that these impairments did not qualify as any listed

impairment (step three). The ALJ placed particular emphasis on Rasmussen’s

drug-seeking behavior, admissions of physically strenuous activities, and the

absence of medical records corroborating her reports of disabling pain to conclude

that Rasmussen’s testimony regarding her pain and limitations was not credible. 

After determining that Rasmussen retained the residual functional capacity to

perform medium work, the ALJ concluded that Rasmussen could perform her past

relevant work as a hand packager (step four) and that, in the alternative, she could

perform other light or sedentary work in the national economy (step five). 
No. 07-1771 Page 4

Rasmussen presents four challenges on appeal. She first contests the ALJ’s

conclusion that her testimony was not credible. Rasmussen next contends that the

ALJ erred in concluding that substantial evidence supported denying her benefits. 

Third, Rasmussen argues that new evidence of her disability warrants remand

under 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). Finally, Rasmussen raises two procedural challenges: she

argues that the district court erroneously granted an extension of time to the

government to file its brief and that the ALJ improperly failed to consider a letter

from Rasmussen’s counsel. 

Because the Social Security Appeals Council denied Rasmussen’s request for

review, the ALJ’s decision is the final decision of the Commissioner of Social

Security. See Haynes v. Barnhart, 416 F.3d 621, 626 (7th Cir. 2005). In reviewing

that decision, we are limited to examining whether it is supported by substantial

evidence. 42 U.S.C. § 405(g); Skinner v. Astrue, 478 F.3d 836, 841 (7th Cir. 2007). 

Substantial evidence means “such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might

accept as adequate to support a conclusion.” Skinner, 478 F.3d at 841 (quoting

Richardson v. Perales, 402 U.S. 389, 401 (1971)). Id. Although we may not

substitute our judgment for that of the ALJ, the ALJ must at least minimally

articulate the analysis of the evidence with enough detail and clarity to permit

meaningful appellate review. Boiles v. Barnhart, 395 F.3d 421, 425 (7th Cir. 2005).

Rasmussen first challenges the ALJ’s finding that her testimony was not

credible. The ALJ is best situated to assess witness testimony and demeanor, so we

will not disturb credibility determinations as long as they are supported by the

record. Schmidt v. Astrue, 496 F.3d 833, 843 (7th Cir. 2007). We will therefore only

reverse the ALJ's credibility determination if Rasmussen can show that it was

“patently wrong.” Id. She has not done so. 

The record amply supports the ALJ’s conclusion that Rasmussen’s assertions

of severe chronic pain are not supported by clinical diagnoses. Although an ALJ

may not ignore a claimant’s subjective reports of pain simply because they are not

fully supported by objective medical evidence, discrepancies between objective

evidence and self-reports may suggest symptom exaggeration. Sienkiewicz v.

Barnhart, 409 F.3d 798, 804 (7th Cir. 2005). Here, the ALJ properly considered

Rasmussen’s testimony in light of the factors enumerated in SSR 96-7p and

concluded that Rasmussen had significant functional limitations that precluded

some, but not all, work. See 20 C.F.R. § 404.1529(c)(3). Moreover, Rasmussen’s

doctors consistently found that she has at most mild back and knee problems. It

was not patently wrong for the ALJ to place more weight on the medical record than

on Rasmussen’s testimony regarding her pain. 

The record also supports the ALJ’s finding that Rasmussen’s numerous

emergency-room visits were motivated more by her desire to acquire Vicodin than

by injury or pain. Rasmussen’s doctors expressed concern about her Vicodin
No. 07-1771 Page 5

consumption; one doctor noted that Rasmussen photocopied a prescription for

Vicodin (although Rasmussen vehemently denies this), and Rasmussen herself

concedes that she has a history of Vicodin addiction. And the record supports the

ALJ’s conclusion that Rasmussen was less than credible because she engaged in

activities (such as lawn-mowing) that were inconsistent with her claims of disabling

pain. See Prochaska v. Barnhart, 454 F.3d 731, 737-38 (7th Cir. 2006) (upholding

ALJ’s finding that claimant was not credible where her description of daily

activities was inconsistent with her purported disability). On this record, it was

reasonable for the ALJ to find Rasmussen’s testimony not credible. 

Rasmussen next asserts that the ALJ’s decision is not supported by

substantial evidence. She argues that, given the vocational expert’s testimony that

he did not consider the side effects of her medications when assessing her job

prospects, the ALJ should have concluded that those side effects impair her ability

to work. But Rasmussen has presented no evidence of her medication’s side effects

beyond her own testimony, nor do the medical records support her claim that the

drowsiness caused by her medications is so disabling that she cannot work. 

Although the ALJ could have addressed Rasmussen’s drowsiness more

comprehensively, we concur with the district court’s conclusion that the failure to

do so is harmless. See Prochaska, 454 F.3d at 736-37 (holding that the ALJ’s failure

to explicitly address claimant’s obesity was harmless because she failed to point to

any evidence supporting her claim that her obesity significantly exacerbated her

physical impairments). Rasmussen also contends that the ALJ should have given

greater weight to the vocational expert’s testimony that someone with all of

Rasmussen’s self-reported limitations could not work. But the ALJ’s credibility

determination, together with the absence of any medical records corroborating

Rasmussen’s self-reported pain, support the conclusion that she can work. 

Rasmussen has not shown that the ALJ's decision is unsupported by substantial

evidence. 

Rasmussen next argues that the Appeals Council and the district court

should have considered additional evidence she provided after the ALJ denied her

claim. As an initial matter, we cannot consider Rasmussen’s new evidence in

reviewing the ALJ’s decision. See 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). But a reviewing court may

remand for additional evidence to be considered if it is both new and material, and

if there exists “good cause for the failure to incorporate such evidence into the

record in a prior proceeding.” Id.; Schmidt v. Barnhart, 395 F.3d 737, 741-42 (7th

Cir. 2005). Evidence counts as new if it was “not in existence or available to the

claimant at the time of the administrative proceeding.” Schmidt, 395 F.3d at 741-

42 (citation omitted). And it is material only if it is reasonably probable that the

ALJ would have reached a different conclusion if he had considered the evidence. 

Id. New evidence is therefore material only if it is relevant to the claimant’s

condition “during the relevant time period encompassed by the disability

application under review.” Id. (citation omitted).
No. 07-1771 Page 6

Rasmussen’s new evidence falls into two categories. First, she argues that

we should remand the case back to the Commission to consider certain documents

she submitted to the Appeals Council, but not to the ALJ. But the Appeals Council

did consider Rasmussen’s additional evidence when concluding that it was

insufficient to warrant review of the ALJ’s decision. Rasmussen’s request for a

remand on this ground is without merit. Rasmussen also argues we should remand

so the Commission may consider a second category of documents she provided to the

district court, but not to the Appeals Council or the ALJ. But these documents

describe her health only after the date that the ALJ denied her claim, so they are

not material. See Schmidt, 395 F.3d at 742. Remand based on this evidence is

inappropriate as well, and Rasmussen’s only remedy is to file a new claim for

benefits. 

Finally, Rasmussen raises two procedural issues. She first argues that the

district court erred in granting the government’s request to extend the time to file

its brief. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 6(b)(2) grants district courts the power to

impose and enforce deadlines, see Raymond v. Ameritech Corp., 442 F.3d 600, 605

(7th Cir. 2006), and we review an exercise of that power only for abuse of discretion,

id. at 606. In this case, the Commissioner of Social Security did not receive the

district court’s scheduling order from the U.S. Attorney’s office until nearly two

months after the deadline to file its brief had passed. As soon as counsel learned of

the missed deadline, she promptly moved for an extension. Under these facts, it

was not an abuse of discretion for the district court to extend the deadline,

especially because Rasmussen has not shown that she was prejudiced by the

extension. See Pioneer Inv. Servs. Co. v. Brunswick Ass. Ltd. P’ship, 507 U.S. 380,

395 (1993).

Rasmussen also asserts that the ALJ erred in denying her benefits on the day

after her attorney sent a letter to the ALJ because the timing suggests that the ALJ

could not have possibly considered her attorney’s letter. But the attorney’s letter

merely summarized evidence already in the record—evidence that the ALJ

considered in his decision. Even if Rasmussen is right and the ALJ did not receive

or read the letter before rendering his decision, he did not err in failing to consider a

summary letter where the underlying evidence highlighted by the letter was

already part of the basis for his decision. 

AFFIRMED.