Justia Public Benefits Opinion Summaries

The 57-year-old woman, diagnosed with frozen shoulder and later with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, stopped medical treatment in 2003, having no health insurance and income of $4500 to $9000 a year as a clerical worker. Her last significant employment, as a hotel night-clerk, ended in 2007. She got another clerical job, but was immediately fired because unable to lift a box of paper. She sought social security disability benefits and resumed treatment. She had regained the full range of motion, but muscles in her arms and shoulders were weak and she had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, causing bronchitis, respiratory infections, and shortness of breath. The ALJ decided that she was capable of performing as hotel clerk and was not disabled; he disregarded findings by a doctor whom he had appointed and with whom the applicant had no prior relationship. He noted the “lack of aggressive treatment” and that she smoked, overlooking that she stopped smoking 30 years earlier. The ALJ focused on her ability to do laundry, take public transportation, and grocery shop. The Appeals Council declined review. The Seventh Circuit remanded, stating that: “Really the Social Security Administration and the Justice Department should have been able to do better.” View "Hughes v. Astrue" on Justia Law

The plaintiff claimed that an influenza vaccination he received n 2004 at the age of 34 resulted in the onset of multiple sclerosis or significantly aggravated his preexisting, but asymptomatic, multiple sclerosis. A special master denied his claim for compensation under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986, 42 U.S.C. 300aa-1 to -34. The Claims Court and the Federal Circuit affirmed. View "W.C. v. Sec'y of Health & Human Servs." on Justia Law

A VA regional office awarded King disability compensation for residuals of a left knee surgery and right knee arthritis. King later sought disability compensation for disabilities of the back and hips on a direct basis and as secondary to his service-connected knee disabilities. Records revealed no treatment for back or hip problems during King's active duty service 1973-1974. King underwent a VA spine examination in 2000. The examiner diagnosed minimal degenerative joint disease of both hips and lumbosacral spine, related to age. A private physician disagreed. In 2007, the Board of Veterans denied King's appeal. The Veterans Court remanded. Additional evidence was developed and, in 2008, the Board obtained an opinion from a Veterans Hospital Administration orthopedist that it was not likely that King’s back and bilateral hip disabilities were directly caused or permanently worsened by the service-connected knee disabilities. The Board and Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims affirmed the denial. The Federal Circuit affirmed, rejecting an argument that the Veterans Court erred by discounting lay testimony offered by King and his wife. The Veterans Court did not fail to consider the proffered lay evidence, so King’s appeal was merely a challenge to the weight given his evidence.View "King v. Shinseki" on Justia Law

Hibbard, then 41 years old and working as a teacher, received a flu vaccination in 2003. She claims that the flu vaccine caused her to develop a neurological disorder known as dysautonomia, a dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system and sought compensation under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986, 42 U.S.C.300aa-1 to 300aa-34. Following a two-day hearing, a special master found that Hibbard had failed to show that her dysautonomia resulted from autonomic neuropathy caused by the vaccine she received in 2003. The Court of Federal Claims upheld the decision. The Federal Circuit affirmed, finding substantial evidence to support the denial. View "Hibbard v. Sec'y Health & Human Servs." on Justia Law

In his 40s, Kastner had worked as a truck driver and as a delivery manager. Having suffered injuries following a fall and subsequent heavy lifting at work, he suffered from a degenerative disc disorder and pain in various parts of his body, and sought disability insurance benefits under 42 U.S.C. 423(d). An administrative law judge determined that, though Kastner’s impairments are severe, they do not meet listed requirements for a presumptively disabling condition and that Kastner has residual capability to perform certain jobs in the economy. The Appeals Council denied review and the district court affirmed. The Seventh Circuit reversed and remanded, holding that the ALJ did not adequately explain why Kastner had not met the requirements for a presumptive disability. View "Kastner v. Astrue" on Justia Law

Plaintiff-Appellant Pennie Keyes-Zachary appealed a district court order that affirmed the Commissioner's decision denying her applications for Social Security disability and Supplemental Security Income benefits. Plaintiff alleged disability based on, among other things, neck, back, shoulder, elbow, wrist, hand, and knee problems, accompanied by pain; hearing loss; urinary frequency; anger-management problems; depression; and anxiety. The ALJ upheld the denial of her application for benefits. The Appeals Council denied her request for review of the ALJ's decision, and she then appealed to the district court. The district court remanded the case to the ALJ for further consideration. After the second hearing, the ALJ determined that Plaintiff retained residual functional capacity to perform light work with certain restrictions, but that she was not disabled within the meaning of the Social Security Act. The Appeals Council declined jurisdiction, and the ALJ's decision was then deemed the Commissioner's final decision. On appeal Plaintiff raised two issues: (1) that the ALJ "failed to properly consider, evaluate and discuss the medical source evidence;" and (2) the ALJ "failed to perform a proper credibility determination." Upon review, the Tenth Circuit found no error in the ALJ's decision and affirmed the Commission's final determination in Plaintiff's case. View "Keyes-Zachary v. Astrue" on Justia Law

Adams worked in coal mines for 17 years, leaving A & E Coal in 1988, after 12 years, because he was having difficulty breathing. He has not worked since. Adams also smoked cigarettes for about 25 years, averaging a pack a day before quitting in 1998 or 1999. Adams filed his first claim for benefits under the Black Lung Benefits Act 30 U.S.C. 901 in 1988. His claim was denied: He did not prove that his pneumoconiosis was caused in part by his coal-mine work, or that his pneumoconiosis totally disabled him. In 2007, Adams filed a second claim. Two pulmonologists agreed that he was completely disabled, but disagreed on what lung diseases Adams had, and on what caused them. An Administrative Law Judge awarded benefits, finding that Adams had pneumoconiosis, that the disease was caused by Adams’s exposure to coal dust during his coal-mine employment, and that he was totally disabled because of the disease. The Benefits Review Board and the Third Circuit affirmed. Although the ALJ was not required to look at the preamble to the regulations to assess the doctors’ credibility, he was entitled to do so. View "A & E Coal Co. v. Adams" on Justia Law

Ulman filed her claim for benefits in 2006, alleging that her disability began in 2002. As found by the ALJ, her insured status expired on December 31, 2003. To be eligible for benefits, her disability must have begun on or before that date and continued until she filed her application for benefits. 42 U.S.C. 423(a)(1). Claimant was 47 at the time her insured status expired. She had worked as a waitress, park ranger, and home health aide. In rejecting her claim, the ALJ confused the dates of December 3, 2001 when she fell backwards off a ladder, with the 2006 date of the application, and made an adverse credibility determination. The ALJ recognized that she suffered from physical limitations that prevented her from performing her past work, but found that she could perform other jobs (cashier, parking lot attendant, ticket taker) that existed in the national economy. The Appeals Council and district court affirmed. The Sixth Circuit affirmed, applying harmless error analysis to the credibility determination. With the exception of confusion about the date, the ALJ’s decision carefully parsed the medical records and accorded them fair weight; those records support a finding of no disability.View "Ulman v. Comm'r of Soc. Sec." on Justia Law

Filus, a 50-year-old former truck driver, has twice applied for disability benefits under the Social Security Act, claiming that back problems have left him incapable of gainful employment. An administrative law judge concluded that Filus could perform some light work and denied his most recent application. The Seventh Circuit affirmed, holding that substantial evidence supports the denial. The ALJ adequately considered Filus’s testimony about the limiting effects of his pain along with his testimony that he regularly completed his daily household activities without any pain medication, not even over-the-counter products.View "Filus v. Astrue" on Justia Law

Griglock, a 70-year-old retired woman, received an influenza vaccination in 2005. Weeks later, she went to her doctor, complaining of weakness, and was admitted to the hospital. Her treating neurologist determined that she suffered from Guillain-Barré Syndrome. She improved initially, but soon developed respiratory failure and was placed on a ventilator. She died about 18 months later; her death certificate lists “ventilator-dependent respiratory failure due to GBS” as the immediate cause of death. Her estate filed a petition for compensation under the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, 42 U.S.C. 300aa-1, 300aa-10(a). The government responded that there was insufficient evidence to find that the influenza vaccine caused her GBS and death, but that it would not contest the issue and recommended an award of up to $250,000. The estate then sought unreimbursable medical expenses and compensation for pain and suffering. The Special Master determined that Griglock’s death was caused by an influenza vaccination, that her estate had standing, but that entitlement was limited to death benefits because injury benefits were barred by the statute of limitations. The Court of Federal Claims affirmed. The Federal Circuit affirmed. View "Griglock v. Sec'y of Health & Human Servs." on Justia Law