Opinion ID: 3043549
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Doctor’s Report

Text: An ALJ must determine the weight accorded to various medical opinions. See 20 C.F.R. § 416.927(c). The ALJ should consider the following factors: the examining and treatment relationship between the claimant and doctor, the length of the treatment and the frequency of the examination, the nature and extent of the treatment relationship, the supportability and consistency of the evidence, the specialization of the doctor, and other factors that tend to support or contradict the opinion. Id. The more relevant evidence a medical source presents to support an opinion, particularly medical signs and laboratory findings, the more weight will be assigned that opinion. § 416.927(c)(3). Generally, the more consistent an opinion is with the record as a whole, the more weight will be assigned that opinion. § 416.927(c)(4). The ALJ “may reject the opinion of any physician when the evidence supports a contrary conclusion.” Bloodsworth v. Heckler, 703 F.2d 1233, 1240 (11th Cir. 1983). The opinion of a treating physician need not be given substantial weight when there is “good cause” to the contrary, meaning that the opinion was not bolstered by the evidence, the evidence supported a contrary finding, or the treating physician’s opinion was conclusory or inconsistent with the doctor’s own medical records. Phillips v. Barnhart, 357 F.3d 1232, 1240-41 (11th Cir. 2004). 7 Case: 14-15261 Date Filed: 07/31/2015 Page: 8 of 8 Hearn suggests that the ALJ substituted his opinion for that of Dr. Wilson, but Hearn’s own brief shows that the ALJ actually afforded little weight to Dr. Wilson’s evaluation in light of distinct contrasts with other evidence in the record. The ALJ complied with Eleventh Circuit precedent and did not err.