Source: https://casetext.com/case/jesurum-v-secretary-dhhs
Timestamp: 2020-07-14 17:03:18
Document Index: 237442694

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 423', '§ 416', 'art 404', '§ 416', '§ 416', 'art 404', '§ 200', '§ 416', 'art 404', '§ 200']

Jesurum v. Secretary D.H.H.S, 48 F.3d 114 | Casetext Search + Citator
Jesurum v. Secretary D.H.H.S
Terwilliger v. Chater
That request was denied, thus rendering the ALJ's decision the final decision of the Commissioner. See…
Irelan v. Barnhart
The role of the court is to determine whether the Commissioner's findings of fact are supported by…
Full title:GISELA JESURUM, APPELLANT, v. SECRETARY OF THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF…
48 F.3d 114 (3d Cir. 1995)
explaining that substantial evidence "is less than a preponderance of the evidence but more than a mere scintilla"
Summary of this case from Fernandez ex rel. I.F. v. Saul
Submitted Under Third Circuit LAR 34.1(a), January 25, 1995.
Abraham S. Alter, Langton Alter, Rahway, NJ, for appellant.
When reviewing the Secretary's denial of disability benefits, we are limited to determining whether the Secretary's denial is supported by substantial evidence. Brown v. Bowen, 845 F.2d 1211, 1213 (3d Cir. 1988). Substantial evidence is "such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion." Richardson v. Perales, 402 U.S. 389, 401, 91 S.Ct. 1420, 1427, 28 L.Ed.2d 842 (1971). It is less than a preponderance of the evidence but more than a mere scintilla. Id.
To receive disability benefits, claimants must demonstrate that they are unable "to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or which has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than 12 months." 42 U.S.C.A. § 423(d)(1)(A) (1991). The Secretary uses a five step process to determine if a person is eligible for Supplemental Security Income benefits. In the first two steps, the claimant must establish (1) that she is not engaged in "substantial gainful activity" and (2) that she suffers from a severe medical impairment. Bowen v. Yuckert, 482 U.S. 137, 140-41, 107 S.Ct. 2287, 2290-91, 96 L.Ed.2d 119 (1987). If the claimant shows a severe medical impairment, the Secretary determines (3) whether the impairment is equivalent to an impairment listed by the Secretary as creating a presumption of disability. Id. at 141, 107 S.Ct. at 2291. If it is not, the claimant bears the burden of showing (4) that the impairment prevents her from performing the work that she has performed in the past. Id. If the claimant satisfies this burden, the Secretary must grant the claimant benefits unless the Secretary can demonstrate (5) that there are jobs in the national economy that the claimant can perform. Ferguson v. Schweiker, 765 F.2d 31, 37 (3d Cir. 1985). When the claimant's residual functioning capacity fits within the definitions promulgated in Department of Health and Human Service regulations, the Secretary can meet her burden of demonstrating that work exists for the claimant in the national economy by reference to tables promulgated by administrative rulemaking (the "grids"). Heckler v. Campbell, 461 U.S. 458, 468-70, 103 S.Ct. 1952, 1957-59, 76 L.Ed.2d 66 (1983).
Based on this evidence and Dr. Miranda's determination that Jesurum could sit intermittently for four hours of an eight hour day and lift up to twenty pounds, the ALJ found that Jesurum could perform the full range of "light work" as defined in 20 C.F.R. § 416.967(b). Applying Rule 202.16 of Table 2, Appendix 2, Subpart P of 20 C.F.R. part 404 (the "grid"), the ALJ's findings regarding her ability to perform light work, her age, work experience, and education level required a finding under the grid that Jesurum was not disabled.
Dr. Miranda was the physician most qualified to evaluate Jesurum's back condition and gave the most explicit statement of her residual functioning capacity. No evaluation of a prior doctor and no prior radiology or other diagnostic report suggests anything which conflicts with Dr. Miranda's determinations. Nor do the other examinations provide sufficient evidence to justify a finding that Jesurum's residual capacity exceeded those limits recommended by Dr. Miranda.
The only other medical evidence which might support an extension in Jesurum's functioning capacity beyond Dr. Miranda's prescribed limits was the May radiology report of an X-ray of Jesurum's spine. While this report showed normal vertebrae, X-rays give a less accurate picture of soft tissue abnormalities, such as those suffered by Jesurum. See Mosby's Medical, Nursing, Allied Health Dictionary 374 (4th ed. 1994). Thus, the report does not justify disregarding the earlier CT scan results and Dr. Miranda's evaluation which disclosed significant back problems.
Accordingly, whether substantial evidence exists to support the ALJ's determination depends on whether Dr. Miranda's evaluation justifies a determination that Jesurum could perform a full range of "light work" as defined by the Secretary. 20 C.F.R. § 416.967(b) defines "light work" in the following terms:
The Secretary has indicated that her definition is equivalent to the Department of Labor's definition of light work in the Dictionary of Occupational Titles ("DOT"). See 20 C.F.R. § 416.967. The DOT defines light work as:
The ALJ can judge the availability of work in the national economy for the applicant using the "grid" if the claimant can perform "substantially all" of the tasks required for "light work" and "sedentary work" but cannot perform "substantially all" the tasks required in "medium work." See 20 C.F.R. part 404, subpart P, Appendix 2, § 200.00(d); Thompson v. Sullivan, 987 F.2d 1482, 1488 (10th Cir. 1993); Walker v. Bowen, 826 F.2d 996, 1002-03 (11th Cir. 1987); Soc.Sec.Ruling 83-10 at 26, 30; Social Security Ruling 83-11 reprinted in 1983-1991 West Social Security Reporting Service 34 (1992) [hereinafter Soc.Sec.Ruling 83-11].
Dr. Miranda's report cannot justify a conclusion that Jesurum is capable of performing substantially all of the defined tasks required to meet the light work standard. Dr. Miranda stated Jesurum could lift approximately 15-20 pounds for only one third of an eight hour day. However, the Secretary's definition requires the ability to stand, walk, lift, and/or carry objects of at least 10 pounds for approximately six hours of an eight hour day. Soc.Sec.Ruling 83-10 at 29. Dr. Miranda further stated that Jesurum's medical condition prevented her from pushing or pulling as a part of her work. Pushing and pulling objects or levers, either in a seated or standing position, is a prerequisite to much light work. Id. at 29; 20 C.F.R. § 416.967(b); 2 Department of Labor, Dictionary of Occupational Titles 1013 (4th ed. 1991). Finally, Dr. Miranda limited Jesurum's ability to sit to four hours of a work day at intervals of fifteen to twenty minutes. While light work does not require sitting so much as the ability to stand or work at a table, the Secretary has recognized that an inability to remain in either a sitting or standing position for the majority of the workday makes it inappropriate to categorize the applicant as capable of doing either sedentary or light work. In Social Security Ruling 83-12, the Secretary wrote:
There are some jobs in the national economy — typically professional and managerial ones — in which a person can sit or stand with a degree of choice. . . . However, most jobs have ongoing work processes which demand that a worker be in a certain place or posture for at least a certain length of time to accomplish a certain task. Unskilled types of jobs are particularly structured so that a person cannot sit or stand at will.
The Courts of Appeals have recognized that it is inappropriate to apply the grids to determine the eligibility of the claimant for jobs in the national economy under facts similar to those present here. Two courts have reversed the Secretary's denials, based on a finding that the claimant could perform light work, when the claimant had to alternate between sitting and standing throughout the day. Gibson v. Heckler, 762 F.2d 1516, 1521 (11th Cir. 1985) (use of the grids was inappropriate where claimant could not sit or stand for more than four hours at a time); Wages v. Secretary of Health Human Services, 755 F.2d 495, 497-98 (6th Cir. 1985) (use of the grids inappropriate where claimant needed to sit or stand alternately as necessary throughout the day).
We have also identified three cases which reject the Secretary's finding that a claimant can do light work in the face of nearly identical weight bearing and sitting limitations as those faced by Jesurum. White v. Secretary of Health and Human Services, 910 F.2d 64, 66 (2d Cir. 1990) (government lacked substantial evidence that claimant could do light work when, though claimant could lift twenty pounds occasionally, he could sit for only four hours in an eight hour day — two to three hours without interruption — and could not push or pull); Strunkard v. Secretary of Health and Human Services, 841 F.2d 57, 61 (3d Cir. 1988) (evidence that claimant could only sit for three hours, could not push or pull, and could only stand for three hours could not justify a finding that the claimant was capable of doing light work); Jennings v. Bowen, 703 F. Supp. 833, 836, 840 (D.Ariz. 1988) (government lacked substantial evidence to show that the claimant could do light work when claimant could only occasionally lift 10-20 pounds, could sit for only fifteen minutes without interruption for up to four hours, and had a limited ability to walk for extended periods).
We, like these courts, do not believe that Jesurum's limitations, as demonstrated by the medical record, can support a conclusion, that she can perform the full range of light work. Accordingly, use of the grids, here Table 2, to determine whether substantial work existed for her in the economy was inappropriate. 20 C.F.R. part 404, Subpart P, Appendix 2, § 200.00(d). Because the ALJ relied exclusively on the grids in arriving at his determination that Jesurum was not disabled, we must reverse the decision.
Dr. Miranda recommended that Jesurum be trained for "sedentary work avoiding lower back aggravation." In making this evaluation, Dr. Miranda did not intend the legal definition of "sedentary" used by the Secretary. Rather, he intended the more pervasive use of the word — "characterized by or requiring sitting or slight activity." Webster's Third International New World Dictionary 2054 (unabridged ed. 1966). Jesurum could not perform "sedentary" work, as legally defined, because sedentary work requires the ability to sit for at least six hours of an eight hour day. Soc.Sec.Ruling 83-10 at 26. We note that the inability to do sedentary work may itself be grounds for reversing a determination that a claimant can do light work. Walker v. Bowen, 826 F.2d 996, 1003 (11th Cir. 1987).
asserting that a single trip out of state two years before hearing is insufficient to support a finding of ability to engage continuously in substantial gainful activity
In Jensurum, the Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit found that a trip to Europe could not be used as a basis to deny the claimant benefits.
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In Jesurum v. Sec'y of U.S. Dep't of Health Human Servs., 48 F.3d 114, 120 (3d Cir. 1995), the Third Circuit Court of Appeals found that the plaintiff could list 15-20 pounds for one third of an eight hour day.
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In Jesurum v. Sec'y of the Dep't of Health Human Services, 48 F.3d 114, 120 (3d Cir. 1995), the Third Circuit stated that when a claimant cannot remain in either a sitting or standing position for the majority of the workday, it is inappropriate to categorize that claimant as capable of doing either sedentary or light work.
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