PRATT v. COMMISSIONER SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION (2018)

United States Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit.

Anteria PRATT Plaintiff-Appellant v. COMMISSIONER, SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION Defendant-Appellee

No. 18-1510

Decided: December 04, 2018

Before BENTON, BOWMAN, and ERICKSON, Circuit Judges. Anteria Pratt, Pro Se Pamela A. Kultgen, Assistant Regional Counsel, Social Security Administration, Office of General Counsel Region VII, Kansas City, MO, Jeffrey P. Ray, Matthew N. Sparks, Assistant U.S. Attorneys, U.S. Attorney's Office, Kansas City, MO, for Defendant-Appellee

[Unpublished]

Anteria Pratt challenges a district court ¹ order affirming the denial of disability insurance benefits (DIB). After careful consideration of Pratt’s arguments for reversal, we agree with the district court that substantial evidence on the record as a whole supports the administrative law judge’s (ALJ’s) determination that Pratt was not entitled to DIB. See Chismarich v. Berryhill, 888 F.3d 978, 979 (8th Cir. 2018) (per curiam) (de novo review). Specifically, we find that substantial evidence supports the ALJ’s determination that Pratt’s neck and back problems were not severe impairments, see Martise v. Astrue, 641 F.3d 909, 923 (8th Cir. 2011) (severe impairment is one which significantly limits claimant’s physical or mental ability to engage in basic work activities); and that substantial evidence supports the ALJ’s mental residual functional capacity determination, as the ALJ properly discounted the opinion of the medical expert to the extent the expert suggested additional limitations, see Estes v. Barnhart, 275 F.3d 722, 725 (8th Cir. 2002) (ALJ may reject opinion of any medical expert if it is inconsistent with medical record as whole). Accordingly, the judgment is affirmed.

FOOTNOTES

1.   The Honorable Brian C. Wimes, United States District Judge for the Western District of Missouri.

PER CURIAM.