Leonard R. Greger v. Jo Anne B. Barnhart, Commissioner of Social Security

Leonard R. Greger appeals the district court’s order affirming the Commissioner of Social Security’s (“Commissioner”) denial of social security disability insurance benefits under Title II of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 401-33 . We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we affirm.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Greger applied for social security disability insurance benefits on January 30, 2001. He alleged that he became disabled on June 25, 1998 due to triple bypass surgery, high blood pressure, a defective aorta, fibromyalgia, bad knees, and stomach problems. Greger’s disability insurance lapsed on December 31, 1998, and so he must establish that he was disabled and unable to work from the alleged onset date, June 25, 1998, to December 31, 1998 (the “relevant period”).

Greger was 49 years old, with a ninth-grade education, when his insured status expired. At his hearing on October 8, 2002, Greger testified that he worked as a truck driver until 1993 and was self-employed after that, doing miscellaneous carpentry-type jobs until shortly before he had open heart surgery in June 1998. Greger also had surgery in July 1998 to remove a perianal abscess with…

dissenting:

Leonard Greger suffers from Posh-Traumatic Stress Disorder (“PTSD”) arising out of his experiences during his military service in Vietnam. In 1998, the Veterans Administration (“VA”) rated Greger as 30% disabled due to his PTSD diagnosis. According to Greger, his PTSD makes it difficult for him to get along with authority, causes him to be irritable, and contributes to his anger control problems. Greger also testified that he has had trouble sleeping due to nightmares. Since 1998, Greger has been on anti-anxiety and anti-depressant medication to control his psychological problems, and previously saw a psychiatrist. In 2000, Greger told a VA examiner that, in addition to his other symptoms, his memory and concentration are poor. That same examiner noted that Greger suffers from “some vague, paranoid thoughts.” And during the examination, Greger took the Mississippi Scale of Combat Stress test and received a raw score of 131, which, according to the VA examiner, “is about average for those diagnosed with PTSD.”

PTSD is a tragic disease that commonly interferes with a sufferer’s ability to interact with other people and maintain work relationships. See Kathleen A. Tarr,…

464 F.3d 968 Leonard R. GREGER, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Jo Anne B. BARNHART, Commissioner of Social Security, Defendant-Appellee. No. 04-35891. United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. Argued and Submitted June 6, 2006. Filed September 20, 2006. 1 COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED Rebecca M. Coufal of Spokane, WA, for Plaintiff-appellant. 2 Robert McCallum, Assistant Attorney General, James A. McDevitt, United States Attorney, Pamela J. Derusha, Assistant United States Attorney, Lucille Gonzales Meis, Regional Chief Counsel, and Franco L. Becia, Assistant Regional Counsel Social Security Administration, of Seattle, WA, for Defendant-appellee. 3 Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington; Michael W. Leavitt, Magistrate Judge, Presiding. D.C. No. CV-04-0023-MWL. 4 Before: FERGUSON and CALLAHAN, Circuit Judges, and BOLTON, * District Judge. BOLTON, District Judge: 5 Leonard R. Greger appeals the district court's order affirming the Commissioner of Social Security's ("Commissioner") denial of social security disability insurance benefits under Title II of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 401-33 . We have jurisdiction pursuant to…