Opinion
Civil Action No. 07-cv-01804-AP.
February 27, 2008
ORDER
The Commissioner of Social Security has moved pursuant to sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) for a judgment with an order of reversal, with remand of the cause to the Commissioner for further administrative proceedings. Defendant's Motion to Remand (doc. #19), filed February 27, 2008, is GRANTED. Under sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g), this Court has the power "to enter, upon the pleadings and transcript of the record, a judgment affirming, modifying or reversing the decision of the Commissioner, with or without remanding the cause for a rehearing." See 42 U.S.C. § 405(g); Shalala v. Schaefer, 509 U.S. 292, 297 (1993).
On remand by the Court, the Appeals Council will remand the matter to an administrative law judge (ALJ) to hold a de novo hearing and to issue a new decision regarding Plaintiff's eligibility for benefits. The ALJ will be instructed to evaluate all of the medical evidence and provide affirmative reasons, linked to specific evidence in the record, for the weight accorded to any medical opinions. The ALJ will also be instructed to evaluate the credibility of Plaintiff's subjective complaints in accordance with SSR 96-7p and controlling Tenth Circuit case law, and to provide specific and legitimate reasons, supported by the record as a whole, for those findings. Furthermore, the ALJ will be instructed to determine Plaintiff's residual functional capacity based on the combination of all of Plaintiff's impairments as evidenced in the record as a whole, including his right leg paralysis; bilateral lower extremity neuropathy, atrophy, and weakness; history of a broken leg and hip; and resultant balancing problems. Finally, the ALJ will be instructed to obtain the testimony of a vocational expert to determine whether there is work existing in significant numbers in the national economy that will accommodate Plaintiff's residual functional capacity.
Pursuant to the power of this Court to enter a judgment affirming, modifying, or reversing the Commissioner's decision with a remand under sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g), and in light of the Commissioner's request for remand of this action for further administrative proceedings, this Court hereby
REVERSES the Commissioner's decision under sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g), and
REMANDS the cause to the Commissioner for further administrative proceedings, as set forth above.
IT IS SO ORDERED.