Bray

BACKGROUND

On March 25, 2003, Bray filed an application for disability insurance benefits alleging that she had been disabled since November 9, 2001. After her claim was denied initially and on reconsideration, Bray requested a hearing before an ALJ. On November 7, 2003, Bray protectively filed for supplemen- tal social security income payments, and that application was consolidated with her prior claim and expedited to the hearing level.

On March 22, 2005, the date of her hearing, Bray was 54 years old and approximately a month from turning 55. She has a high school education and one year’s vocational training as a medical assistant. She suffers from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (“COPD”), asthma, hypertension, anxiety, depression, and arthritis. Most recently, before filing her application, Bray worked for an ill friend as a part-time care- giver; before that she briefly worked at a call center handling customer service inquiries, but was terminated after three weeks on the job when she requested workplace accommoda- 1350 BRAY v. SSA tions related to her difficulty breathing. Subsequently, she enrolled in a custodial training program, but…