Shively v. Social Security Administration, Commissioner of

Filing 29

MEMORANDUM denying 15 Motion for Summary Judgment; granting 22 Motion for Summary Judgment; affirming 24 Report and Recommendations. The Commissioners decision denying benefits will be AFFIRMED, and the case will be DISMISSED. AN APPROPRIATE ORDER WILL ENTER. Signed by District Judge Curtis L Collier on 9/24/2024. (DCB)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE
AT CHATTANOOGA
LAWRENCE E. SHIVELY,

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Plaintiff,
v.
COMMISSIONER OF SOCIAL
SECURITY ADMINISTRATION,
Defendant.

Case No. 1:22-cv-283
Judge Curtis L. Collier
Magistrate Judge Susan K. Lee

MEMORANDUM
Plaintiff brought this action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) seeking judicial review of the
final decision of the Commissioner of Social Security (“Commissioner” or “Defendant”) denying
him childhood disability insurance benefits (“CDIB”). (Doc. 2 at 1.) The Court referred the matter
to United States Magistrate Judge Susan Lee, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(b) and in accordance
with Rule 72(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure for a report and recommendation (“R&R”).
The Magistrate Judge filed an R&R recommending Plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment
(Doc. 15) be denied, Defendant’s motion for summary judgment (Doc. 22) be granted, the decision
of the commissioner be affirmed, and the case closed. (Doc. 24 at 1.) Plaintiff timely filed an
objection to the R&R (Doc. 25), and Defendant responded (Doc. 27). For the following reasons,
the Court will ACCEPT and ADOPT the Magistrate Judge’s R&R (Doc. 24).
I.

BACKGROUND
The R&R begins with a detailed summary of the procedural and factual history of this case.

(Doc. 24 at 1–3.) The parties do not object to this portion of the R&R, and the Court incorporates
Sections I and II of the R&R by reference.

Plaintiff filed an application for CDIB,1 originally alleging an onset of disability date of
October 13, 1991, and later amended the onset date to April 1, 2012. (Doc. 19 at 27, 122, 355.)
Plaintiff’s claim was denied initially and on reconsideration. (Id. at 142.) He requested a hearing
before an Administrative Law Judge (“ALJ”). (Id.) An ALJ dismissed Plaintiff’s request for a
hearing, but after review, the Appeals Council remanded the case to the ALJ for further action.
(Id. at 148–149.) The ALJ conducted an administrative hearing on April 8, 2021, and issued an
unfavorable decision on May 26, 2021, finding Plaintiff was not entitled to CDIB. (Id. at 24, 59–
84.) The Appeals Council denied review, making the ALJ’s decision the final decision of the
Commissioner. (Id. at 8–13.) Plaintiff timely filed the pending action. (See Doc. 2.)
II.

STANDARD OF REVIEW
This Court must conduct a de novo review of those portions of the R&R to which objection

is made and may accept, reject, or modify, in whole or in part, the magistrate judge’s findings or
recommendations. 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1). The Court’s standard of review is essentially the same
as the magistrate judge’s—review is limited to determining if the ALJ’s findings are supported by
substantial evidence and if proper legal standards were used. 42 U.S.C. § 405(g); Brainard v.
Sec’y of Health & Human Servs., 889 F.2d 679, 681 (6th Cir. 1989) (per curiam). “Substantial
evidence” means relevant evidence a reasonable mind might accept to support the conclusion at
issue. Stanley v. Sec’y of Health & Human Servs., 39 F.3d 115, 117 (6th Cir. 1994). Substantial
evidence is greater than a scintilla but less than a preponderance. Richardson v. Perales, 402 U.S.

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According to the administrative record, it appears Plaintiff filed an application for CDIB
on December 19, 2017. (Doc. 19 at 122, 355.) The R&R states Plaintiff filed the application on
January 19, 2018, which is also supported by the record. (Id. at 329; Doc. 24 at 1.) The parties
did not object to the statements of fact in the R&R.
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389, 401 (1971); Brainard, 889 F.2d at 681. If supported by substantial evidence, the Court must
affirm the ALJ’s findings, even if substantial evidence also supports the opposite conclusion.
Jones v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec., 336 F.3d 469, 475 (6th Cir. 2003). “The substantial evidence
standard presupposes that there is a ‘zone of choice’” within which the decisionmakers can go
either way, without interference by the courts. Felisky v. Bowen, 35 F.3d 1027, 1035 (6th Cir.
1994) (quoting Mullen v. Bowen, 800 F.2d 535, 545 (6th Cir. 1986)). The ALJ need not discuss
every aspect of the record or explain every finding at length but must “articulate with specificity
reasons for the findings and conclusions that he or she makes” to facilitate meaningful judicial
review. Bailey v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec., No. 90-3061, 1999 WL 96920, at *4 (6th Cir. Feb. 2,
1999); see Thacker v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec., 99 F. App’x 661, 665 (6th Cir. 2004). The court may
consider any evidence in the record, regardless of whether it has been cited by the ALJ. Heston v.
Comm’r of Soc. Sec., 245 F.3d 528, 535 (6th Cir. 2001).
III.

DISCUSSION
Plaintiff objects to the Magistrate Judge’s conclusion that the ALJ adequately considered

medical opinion evidence as required by 20 C.F.R. § 404.1520c. (Doc. 25 at 2–4.) Plaintiff’s
argument focuses specifically on the ALJ’s consideration of the supportability and consistency
factors in evaluating Dr. Huffman’s opinions about Plaintiff’s physical and mental health. (Id. at
2–3.)
In his motion for summary judgment, Plaintiff argued that the ALJ’s discussion of “every
opinion of record in a single paragraph” violated 20 C.F.R. § 404.1520c because the ALJ “failed
to discuss the consistency and supportability factors anywhere in her ‘analysis’ of the opinion
evidence.” (Doc. 16 at 11.) He stated the ALJ failed to give “any real consideration to the specific
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opinions” of the medical providers.” (Id. at 14.) In the R&R, the Magistrate Judge stated that
“Plaintiff’s argument overlooks the rest of the ALJ’s written decision, which does address
consistency, supportability, and other relevant factors as they apply to the opinion evidence in this
case.” (Doc. 24 at 10.) The Magistrate Judge referenced several other places in the ALJ’s opinion
where the ALJ discussed the medical opinions in greater detail. (Id. at 12.) One of the excerpts
the Magistrate Judge highlighted from the ALJ’s decision was the following regarding Dr.
Huffman’s medical opinions:
I found the mental portions of Dr. Huffman’s October 2016 opinions (Exhibits
B23F; B26F) partially persuasive. Although these opinions were offered after the
claimant attained age 22, Dr. Huffman had a treating relationship with the claimant
throughout the relevant period. However, he is not a mental health professional,
did not opine on many areas due to his lack of knowledge, and reached some
conclusions that were not consistent with his treatment notes or supported by other
evidence.
(Doc. 19 at 37.) Now, in his objection to the R&R, Plaintiff argues that “[t]he Magistrate Judge
pointed to this portion of the record to claim that the ALJ did properly comply with 20 C.F.R.
§ 404.1520c . . . yet, the ALJ simply provided more of the same—unfounded cursory declarations.”
(Doc. 25 at 3.) Plaintiff contends “[t]he ALJ did nothing more than declare that Dr. Huffman’s
opinions were not supported or inconsistent with the record . . . [but] did not identify any specific
evidence or cite to anything in the record to support that conclusion.” (Id. at 3.) In response,
Defendant states this is the first time Plaintiff argues “that the ALJ did not sufficiently explain her
particular reasons for finding only partially persuasive the opinion on mental functioning by Dr.
Huffman,” and argument on this point is therefore waived. (Doc. 27 at 1.)
To the extent Plaintiff raises an entirely new argument in his objection to the R&R, the
argument is waived. See McCafferty v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec., No. 22-3865, 2023 U.S. App. LEXIS
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13488, at *2–3 (6th Cir. May 31, 2023) (citing Swain v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec., 379 F. App’x 512,
517-18 (6th Cir. 2010) (recognizing that a plaintiff forfeits a “claim raised for the first time in
objections to a magistrate judge’s report”)). Additionally, to the extent Plaintiff simply reiterates
his previous arguments, the objection is waived. D.S. v. Knox Cnty., No. 3:20-cv-240, 2022 U.S.
Dist. LEXIS 54171, at *31–32 (E.D. Tenn. Mar. 25, 2022) (“Courts in the Sixth Circuit have
routinely held that objections that merely restate the arguments previously presented are
improper.”); see also United States v. Vanover, No. 10-14-DLB-REW-1, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS
54869, at *3 (E.D. Ky. Apr. 11, 2017). But because Plaintiff specifically objects to the Magistrate
Judge’s reasoning for denying his motion for summary judgment as it regards the ALJ’s
consideration of Dr. Huffman’s opinions, the Court will consider whether Plaintiff’s objection has
merit.
An ALJ is required to consider all relevant evidence in a claimant’s record, including
medical opinion evidence. Rudd v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec., 531 F. App’x 719, 728 (6th Cir. 2013).
In evaluating medical opinion evidence, an ALJ is required to consider multiple factors. 20 C.F.R.
§ 404.1520c. “Supportability and consistency will be the most important factors, and usually the
only factors the ALJ is required to articulate.” Jones v. Berryhill, 392 F. Supp. 3d 831, 839 (M.D.
Tenn. 2019) (citation omitted). If a source offers multiple opinions, the ALJ is not required to
articulate their assessment of every single medical opinion; rather, they can articulate how they
considered all of that source’s opinions “in a single analysis.” Id. § 1520c(b)(1).
Regarding supportability, the regulations explain the “more relevant the objective medical
evidence and supporting explanations presented by a medical source are to support his or her
medical opinion(s) or prior administrative medical finding(s), the more persuasive the medical
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opinions or prior administrative medical finding(s) will be.” Id. § 1520c(c)(1). Regarding
consistency, the “more consistent a medical opinion(s) or prior administrative medical finding(s)
is with the evidence from other medical sources and nonmedical sources in the claim, the more
persuasive the medical opinion(s) or prior administrative medical finding(s) will be.”

Id.

§ 1520c(c)(2).
Plaintiff focuses on the paragraph quoted above to argue that the ALJ failed to elaborate
on her conclusions regarding the supportability and consistency of Dr. Huffman’s opinions. (See
generally Doc. 28.) In doing so, Plaintiff disregards the Magistrate Judge’s finding that the ALJ
discusses Dr. Huffman’s opinions elsewhere in her report. (See Doc. 24 at 12–13.) The ALJ
compared and contrasted Dr. Huffman’s opinions with other medical providers’ opinions, noted
the limits of Dr. Huffman’s expertise, and acknowledged when Dr. Huffman’s conclusions were
unsupported by evidence. (E.g., Doc. 19 at 34 (finding Dr. Huffman did not assess Plaintiff’s
ability to perform in certain areas due to his lack of knowledge); 39 (acknowledging limitations
on scope of Dr. Huffman’s evaluation of Plaintiff’s concentration and memory); 40 (comparing
and contrasting Dr. Wray and Dr. Huffman’s reports, and noting Dr. Huffman cited no support for
one of his conclusions)). The Magistrate Judge concluded that “[v]iewed as a whole, the ALJ’s
decision demonstrates that she adequately considered the factors of supportability and consistency
[and other relevant factors]. . . in evaluating the medical opinion evidence.” (Doc. 24 at 13.) The
Court agrees with the R&R.
The ALJ’s discussion of Dr. Huffman and other medical providers’ opinions demonstrates
scrutiny of Plaintiff’s medical records, and consideration of supportability and consistency as

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required by 20 C.F.R. § 404.1520c. Accordingly, the Court will OVERRULE the Plaintiff’s
objection on this point.
IV.

CONCLUSION
After reviewing the record, the Court agrees with the R&R. The Court will ACCEPT and

ADOPT the R&R (Doc. 24). Plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment (Doc. 15) will be
DENIED, and Defendant’s motion for summary judgment (Doc. 22) will be GRANTED. The
Commissioner’s decision denying benefits will be AFFIRMED, and the case will be
DISMISSED.
AN APPROPRIATE ORDER WILL ENTER.
/s/____________________________
CURTIS L. COLLIER
UNITED STATES DISTRICT

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