Ronald L. DeLORME, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Louis W. SULLIVAN, M.D., Secretary of Health and Human Services, Defendant-Appellee

Ronald DeLorme injured his back repeatedly during and after his employment as an interstate bus driver. He appeals from the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services (“the Secretary”) rejecting his application for disability benefits. We reverse and remand.

I. FACTS

DeLorme was a bus driver employed by Greyhound when he sustained his first back injury while changing a tire in 1977. He wanted to resume work as a driver, and returned to work although his orthopedist warned that the physical strain at the job might create further problems. In fact, he suffered repeated back problems. After a hospitalization in October 1977, he was diagnosed as having a ruptured interverte-bral disc. He was off work for two years but returned in 1980. In August 1980 he was riding as a passenger in the rear seat of a Greyhound bus which was struck from behind by a truck. His back was reinjured, and he was diagnosed as having degenerative disc disease and lumbrosacral strain.

Medical examinations since 1980 have consistently reported degenerative disc disease with some narrowing of disc space. Almost all examinations have also…