Source: https://casetext.com/case/adorno-v-shalala
Timestamp: 2019-03-20 03:40:59
Document Index: 26193219

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 405', '§ 423', '§ 423', '§ 423', '§ 404', '§ 3']

Adorno v. Shalala, 40 F.3d 43 | Casetext
40 F.3d 43 (3d Cir. 1994)
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Adornov.Shalala
United States Court of Appeals, Third CircuitNov 9, 1994
Submitted Under Third Circuit LAR 34.1(a), August 10, 1994.
Present: HUTCHINSON and NYGAARD, Circuit Judges, and KATZ, District Judge
Hon. Marvin Katz, United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, sitting by designation.
On May 29, 1991, the ALJ determined that Adorno was not disabled and, therefore, could not receive either disability benefits or SSI. The ALJ's decision became final on May 27, 1992 when the Appeals Council denied Adorno's request for review. Adorno then filed a complaint in the district court, pursuant to 42 U.S.C.A. § 405(g) (West 1991), asking the court to review and set aside the Secretary's decision. On October 7, 1993, the district court affirmed the Secretary's final decision finding Adorno not disabled. On December 6, 1993, the district court denied Adorno's motion for reconsideration.
Although Adorno lists incorrect dates in her brief, it appears that she appeals both of these orders.
Adorno also provided a note dated March 29, 1990 from another treating physician, Alfonso Polanco, M.D. It stated that Adorno "has been a patient at this office for acute bronchial asthma." Admin.Rec. at 100. In response to a request from the Division of Disability Determinations ("DDD"), Dr. Polanco sent a copy of his office notes. They showed that Adorno was seen on four occasions in 1989 and 1990 and was treated with Proventil Inhaler, Proventil Repetabs, Theo-Dur and Vasotec for acute bronchial asthma. Id. at 98-99. Neither the ALJ nor the district court referred to this evidence.
Proventil Inhaler is used "for the prevention and relief of bronchospasm in patients with reversible obstructive airway disease and for the prevention of exercise-induced bronchospasm." Physicians' Desk Reference 2211 (47th ed. 1993). Proventil Repetabs are "for the relief of bronchospasm in patients with reversible obstructive airway disease." Id. at 2213. Theo-Dur is "[f]or relief and/or prevention of symptoms from asthma and reversible bronchospasm associated with chronic bronchitis and emphysema." Id. at 1192. Vasotec is "for treatment of hypertension." Id. at 1621.
On July 11, 1990, the DDD referred Adorno to a consulting physician named Santangelo for a physical examination. Based on an examination and a pulmonary function test, Dr. Santangelo diagnosed Adorno as suffering from a fifteen-year history of asthma and uncontrolled hypertension. Dr. Santangelo's report indicated however that the pulmonary function tests administered to Adorno were within normal limits. In Dr. Santangelo's opinion, Adorno could perform any type of work except work in heavy fumes or dusty environments. Dr. Santangelo disagreed with Dr. Sanchez-Pena's and Dr. Polanco's conclusion that Adorno was suffered from acute asthma. Adorno was also treated in hospital emergency rooms on several occasions, including two visits on March 19, 1987 and October 10, 1988 for asthma attacks.
Dr. Santangelo's full name is not in the record. Adorno v. Shalala, Civ. No. 92-1783, slip op. at 3 n. 2 (D.N.J. Oct. 7, 1993).
One other incident involved what the district court labeled a "perturbed, overly-aggressive pet rooster." Adorno, slip op. at 3.
"Our standard of review, as was the district court's, is whether the Secretary's decision is supported by substantial evidence in the record." Allen v. Bowen, 881 F.2d 37, 39 (3d Cir. 1989). 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) (quoting Consolidated Edison Co. v. NLRB, 305 U.S. 197, 229, 59 S.Ct. 206, 217, 83 L.Ed. 126 (1938)).
"The Social Security Act defines disability in terms of the effect a physical or mental impairment has on a person's ability to function in the workplace." Heckler v. Campbell, 461 U.S. 458, 459-60, 103 S.Ct. 1952, 1953, 76 L.Ed.2d 66 (1983); 42 U.S.C.A. § 423(c) (West 1991). Disability benefits are provided for individuals 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) (West 1991); Campbell, 461 U.S. at 460, 103 S.Ct. at 1953. A person is determined to be disabled only if "his physical or mental impairment or impairments are of such severity that he is not only unable to do his previous work but cannot, considering his age, education, and work experience, engage in any other kind of substantial gainful work which exists in the national economy." 42 U.S.C.A. § 423(d)(2)(A); Campbell, 461 U.S. at 460, 103 S.Ct. at 1953.
The regulations promulgated by the Secretary to implement these definitions recognize that certain impairments, called listed impairments, are so severe that they are presumed to prevent a person from pursuing any gainful work without further proof of occupational disability. Campbell, 461 U.S. at 460, 103 S.Ct. at 1953-54 (citing 20 C.F.R. § 404.1520(d) (1982)). Thus, a claimant who establishes that she suffers from a listed impairment is deemed disabled without further inquiry. Id. If a claimant can pursue her former occupation, she is not entitled to disability benefits. Id. If a claimant suffers from a severe, but unlisted impairment, or a combination of impairments, the Secretary must consider the individual's particular limitations to determine whether the claimant retains the ability to perform either her former work or some less demanding employment. Id.
Adorno, in her first hearing, introduced evidence of only three episodes of asthma over 3 1/2 years. This does not meet the level of severity required for a listed impairment. See 20 C.F.R., pt. 404, subpt. P, app. 1, § 3.03B. For asthma, the listings require acute episodes at least once every two months or on average at least six times a year. Id.
The Secretary, in an effort to make sense of the ALJ's decision seeks to recharacterize Adorno's prior job as a cabinetmaker. Brief of Appellee at 18-19. The Dictionary of Occupational Titles does not list dust and fumes as hazards which accompany a cabinetmaker's job. This attempt to redefine Adorno's former occupation is unsupported by substantial evidence on the whole record. Both the ALJ and the district court describe Adorno's work as a machine operator, which may describe Adorno's former work more aptly. See Admin.Rec. at 11, 14; Adorno, slip op. at 2. The contradiction between this finding and Adorno's uncontradicted testimony about her exposure to dust and fumes must be reconciled.
At one point, however, the district court also calls Adorno a "general laborer." Adorno, slip op. at 2.
If it appears that Adorno cannot return to her former occupation of machine operator, the ALJ must then determine what type of work Adorno can do in order to see whether her case fits into one of the so-called "grids" designed mechanically to take into account the factors of education, age, skills, and physical ability which affect an impaired claimant's employability. See Campbell, 461 U.S. at 461-62, 103 S.Ct. at 1954-55. On this question, the ALJ found that "within these restrictions the claimant is able to perform her prior work as a machine operator or the full range of light work activity." Admin. Rec. at 14.
The record indicates that Dr. Sanchez-Pena and Dr. Polanco are Adorno's treating physicians. The ALJ and the district court addressed only the opinion of Dr. Sanchez-Pena, and concluded it was not entitled to significant weight. See Jones v. Sullivan, 954 F.2d 125, 129 (3d Cir. 1991) (an unsupported diagnosis is not entitled to significant weight). Adorno, however, also points to the testimony of Dr. Polanco and argues that the Secretary failed to give it the weight it deserved. In the ALJ's decision, he states that he made his findings "[a]fter careful consideration of the entire record," Admin.Rec. at 14, but the ALJ did not otherwise explain his reasons for not mentioning Dr. Polanco's note indicating that Adorno was treated for "acute asthma."