Garcia v. Commissioner of SSI ( 1999 )

USCA1 Opinion

       [NOT FOR PUBLICATION NOT TO BE CITED AS PRECEDENT]

                 United States Court of Appeals

                     For the First Circuit











No. 99-1495



                          VICTOR GARCIA,



                      Plaintiff, Appellant,



                                v.



                 COMMISSIONER OF SOCIAL SECURITY,



                       Defendant, Appellee.







           APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT



                 FOR THE DISTRICT OF PUERTO RICO



          [Hon. Jose Antonio Fuste, U.S. District Judge]







                              Before



                    Selya, Boudin and Lynch,

                        Circuit Judges.









     Melba N. Rivera Camacho & Assoc. and Melba N. Rivera-Camacho

on brief for appellant.

     Guillermo Gil, United States Attorney, Lilliam Mendoza-Torro,

Assistant U.S. Attorney, and Wayne G. Lewis, Assistant Regional

Counsel, Social Security Administration, on brief for appellee.











December 29, 1999















     Per Curiam.  After carefully reviewing the briefs and the

administrative record, we affirm the decision of the Commissioner

of Social Security that claimant Victor Garcia was not entitled to

Social Security disability benefits.  We do so essentially for the

reasons stated in the district court's Opinion and Order, dated

January 29, 1999.  The only comment we add is that this is a case

in which there are conflicting medical reports in the record and

we cannot say that the Commissioner's decision not to credit the

reports of claimant's treating physicians was unreasonable.  See

Rodriguez Pagan v. Secretary of Health and Human Services, 819 F.2d

1, 3 (1st Cir. 1987) (per curiam).  As almost always is the case,

such conflicts are for the Commissioner, not the courts.  Rodriguez

v. Secretary of Health and Human Services, 647 F.2d 218, 222 (1st

Cir. 1981).

     Affirmed.