KANSAS CITY – The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, Central Division has affirmed the acting Commissioner of Social Security Nancy Berryhill’s decision in the denial of a man's application for supplemental security income.
“After carefully reviewing the record and the parties’ arguments, the court finds the Commissioner’s decision is supported by substantial evidence on the record as a whole and so is affirmed,” Judge Greg Kays wrote in an April 24 order.
Plaintiff Dennis Lee Timm has impairments from degenerative discs and other medical issues, but an administrative law judge (ALJ) determined he was still able to work as a routing clerk, marker or photocopy machine operator, the ruling states.
Timm filed for benefits in June 2016. He alleged a disability onset of Dec. 8, 2013. He was denied by the Commissioner and so he soon filed an appeal to the ALJ. The ALJ held a hearing in August 2017 and determined that the plaintiff was not disabled.
The Commissioner presented evidence on how disability claims are determined.
“In deciding whether a claimant is disabled, the Commissioner considers the claimant’s age in conjunction with his RFC, education and work experience,” according to the ruling. “When, as in this case, the ALJ finds that a claimant is unable to perform his past relevant work because of his impairments, the burden shifts at Step Five to the Commissioner to show that there are other jobs in the national economy that the claimant can perform despite the limitations in his (residential functional capacity).”
The Commissioner also presented evidence from a vocational expert that testified that Timm could still work as a routing clerk, marker and/or photocopy machine operator, despite his age and background.
“This evidence shows he was capable of performing work existing in significant numbers in the national economy, and so was not disabled," the ruling states.