Elkins v. Astrue , 442 F. App'x 406 ( 2011 )

FILED
United States Court of Appeals
Tenth Circuit
December 2, 2011
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
Elisabeth A. Shumaker
Clerk of Court
FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT
AMBY ELKINS,
Plaintiff-Appellant,
v. No. 11-7037
(D.C. No. 6:09-CV-00431-FHS-KEW)
MICHAEL J. ASTRUE, (E.D. Okla.)
Commissioner, Social Security
Administration,
Defendant-Appellee.
ORDER AND JUDGMENT *
Before LUCERO, ANDERSON, and GORSUCH, Circuit Judges.
Amby Elkins seeks social security disability benefits. She says she suffers
from degenerative disc disease, rheumatoid arthritis, tendinitis, and depression.
The combination of these conditions, she argues, renders her essentially incapable
of performing any work. An administrative law judge, however, rejected
Ms. Elkins’s petition. On the basis of medical evaluations by independent
*
After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel has determined
unanimously to grant the parties’ request for a decision on the briefs without oral
argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(f); 10th Cir. R. 34.1(G). The case is therefore
ordered submitted without oral argument. This order and judgment is not binding
precedent, except under the doctrines of law of the case, res judicata, and
collateral estoppel. It may be cited, however, for its persuasive value consistent
with Fed. R. App. P. 32.1 and 10th Cir. R. 32.1.
physicians, he concluded that Ms. Elkins’s testimony regarding the severity of her
impairments was not credible. Ms. Elkins appealed but the Social Security
Administration’s Appeals Council denied review, and a district court later
affirmed. Now before us, Ms. Elkins says there are four reasons why we must
reverse.
First, she argues that the ALJ erred in failing to find her disabled at step
three of the five-step disability evaluation process prescribed by 20 C.F.R.
§ 416.920. At step three, the ALJ must consider all of the potentially applicable
listed impairments and explain whether the claimant’s condition satisfies the
listing. See Clifton v. Chater, 79 F.3d 1007, 1009 (10th Cir. 1996). Ms. Elkins
claims that the ALJ erred because he didn’t consider Listing 1.04(A), which
concerns certain disorders of the spine. 20 C.F.R. Pt. 404, Subpt. P, App. 1,
Pt. A. § 1.04 A. But even if the ALJ’s failure to consider Listing 1.04(A) was
error, it was harmless error in light of the ALJ’s findings at subsequent steps in
the disability evaluation process where he expressly addressed Ms. Elkins’s
claimed spinal disorders. See Fischer-Ross v. Barnhart, 431 F.3d 729, 734
(10th Cir. 2005). At step five, for example, the ALJ found that Ms. Elkins’s back
pain was not severe, that any degeneration of the spine may be a “normal variant”
for a woman of Ms. Elkins’s age, and that there was no evidence of “neurological
deficits” — findings that suffice to negate the existence of a spinal impairment
under Listing 1.04(A). Confirming the harmless nature of any error here,
-2-
Ms. Elkins presented no evidence of nerve-root compression, one of the
requirements of Listing 1.04(A). Her failure to satisfy all of the listing’s criteria
means that she cannot prevail at step three as a matter of law. See Sullivan v.
Zebley, 493 U.S. 521, 530 (1990).
Second, Ms. Elkins argues that the ALJ erred by failing to give controlling
weight to the opinions of her treating physician, Thomas Osborn, D.O. An ALJ,
however, does not have to give controlling weight to the testimony of a treating
physician if that testimony is “not well-supported by medically acceptable clinical
and laboratory diagnostic techniques or if it is inconsistent with the other
substantial evidence in the case record.” Watkins v. Barnhart, 350 F.3d 1297,
1300 (10th Cir. 2003) (quotation omitted). That is the case here. The ALJ
assigned Dr. Osborn’s opinion “little weight” because it was contradicted by the
objective physical evidence in the case and by his own prescribed treatment
regimen. Dr. Osborn testified that Ms. Elkins could sit, stand and walk less than
one hour per work day, could barely use her arms and legs, and would never work
again. But as the ALJ noted, a patient with such severe debilitations would
require 24 hour home care, a far more drastic remedy that Dr. Osborn’s prescribed
treatment — painkillers. And although x-ray evidence showed some spinal
degeneration, other experts testified that the damage was not severe and that
Ms. Elkins’s pain was partially psychosomatic.
-3-
Third, Ms. Elkins says the ALJ erred in finding that her testimony
concerning her impairments wasn’t credible. But we grant significant deference
to the ALJ’s credibility findings so long as the ALJ explains the basis of his
decision. See White v. Barnhart, 287 F.3d 903, 910 (10th Cir. 2001). The ALJ
did that here. He concluded that her complaints were exaggerated and he
supported his decision with substantial medical evidence, including x-rays
showing only moderate degeneration, the absence of observable manifestations
such as weight loss or muscular atrophy, and expert testimony that Ms. Elkins’s
condition could be addressed through physical therapy. Likewise, the ALJ noted
that Ms. Elkins’s demeanor at the hearing suggested an absence of extreme pain.
Certainly, the record also contains evidence that might support a different
conclusion, but it is primarily the ALJ’s task, not ours, to weigh it. Cowan v.
Astrue, 552 F.3d 1182, 1185 (10th Cir. 2008).
Finally, Ms. Elkins challenges the ALJ’s residual functional capacity
assessment because it failed to account for the fact that she uses a cane. But
though Ms. Elkins on occasion uses a cane, she presented no evidence that the
cane was medically necessary. And without such evidence, the ALJ had no
obligation to address the cane in his residual functional capacity assessment. See
Evans v. Chater, 55 F.3d 530, 532 (10th Cir. 1995) (holding that inquiries to the
vocations expert to make a residual functional capacity assessment “must include
all (and only) those impairments borne out by the evidentiary record”).
-4-
The judgment of the district court is affirmed.
Entered for the Court
Neil M. Gorsuch
Circuit Judge
-5-