Jeffrey Greenway v. Michael Astrue

MEMORANDUM

Jeffrey Greenway seeks disability insurance benefits, claiming that he became disabled by schizophrenia before his disability insurance lapsed on June 30, 1982. The district court affirmed the decision of the Appeals Council, which adopted the ALJ’s recommended decision denying benefits. We review de novo a district court’s order upholding the Commissioner’s denial of benefits. See Rollins v. Massanari, 261 F.3d 853, 855 (9th Cir.2001). For the reasons stated below, we affirm.

Greenway argues that the ALJ failed to comply with his duty to fully and fairly develop the record because he did not document his efforts to obtain more of Greenway’s medical records from the late 1970s. The record indicates that the ALJ questioned Greenway at length regarding his hospitalization period, and asked him for possible sources of additional medical records. The record also shows that the ALJ made independent (if unsuccessful) efforts to locate additional medical records for Greenway. Thus, the ALJ fulfilled his duty to develop the record. See Widmark v. Barnhart, 454 F.3d 1063 (9th Cir.2006).

The ALJ’s determination that Greenway did not have a medically determinable impairment was…