USCA1 Opinion
March 11, 1992 [NOT FOR PUBLICATION]
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No. 91-2221
JOSE A. BURGOS-SANTIAGO,
Plaintiff, Appellant,
v.
SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES,
Defendant, Appellee.
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APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF PUERTO RICO
[Hon. Carmen Consuelo Cerezo, U.S. District Judge]
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Before
Torruella, Circuit Judge,
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Campbell, Senior Circuit Judge,
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and Selya, Circuit Judge.
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Raymond Rivera Esteves and Juan A. Hernandez Rivera on brief for
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appellant.
Daniel F. Lopez-Romo, United States Attorney, Jose Vazquez
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Garcia, Assistant United States Attorney, and Jessie M. Klyce,
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Assistant Regional Counsel, Department of Health and Human Services,
on brief for appellee.
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Per Curiam. Claimant, Jose A. Burgos-Santiago,
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appeals from the judgment of the United States District Court
for the District of Puerto Rico affirming the decision of the
Secretary of Health and Human Services that claimant is not
entitled to Social Security Disability benefits.
Claimant received disability benefits from 1962
until May 1982 for tuberculosis of the spine. Instead of
challenging the termination, claimant filed a new application
for disability benefits on November 3, 1982, alleging
February 1962 as an onset date. That application was denied
initially and on reconsideration. Because claimant failed to
appear at the hearing, his application was dismissed. No
further appeal occurred.
Claimant filed a second application, alleging a
spinal cord condition, kidney condition and diabetes
mellitus; he again claimed February 1962 as the onset date.
The application was denied initially and on reconsideration.
After a hearing, an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) concluded
that claimant was not under a disability due to the non-
severity of his conditions. No further appeal was taken.
Appellant filed the present application on
September 22, 1988. He still alleged an onset date of
February 13, 1962 with disability due to diabetes, abscesses
of the back requiring surgeries, a disc condition, high blood
pressure and nerves. After a hearing, an ALJ again found
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that claimant did not have a severe impairment or combination
of impairments for the unadjudicated period December 1, 1984
to June 30, 1986 (when claimant's insured status expired).1
The Appeals Council denied claimant's request for review.
Despite the bulk of the administrative record,
there is little evidence concerning the relevant time period.
Notes from the Diagnostic and Treatment Center in San Juan
are largely illegible. Nonetheless, it appears that in March
1985, claimant had uncontrolled diabetes mellitus. At this
time, a diet was prescribed. In 1985, claimant cut a finger
on his left hand. The remainder of the notes, from September
1984 through 1986 indicate only that claimant's blood
pressure was as high as 190/110 and he weighed up to 199
pounds.
Notes from the Puerto Rico Medical Center, also
largely illegible, reveal that in September 1985, claimant
was seen for an abscess on his lower spine. It is unclear
what was done for this condition at this time. In March
1986, claimant underwent what appears to have been a one-day
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1. The ALJ denied claimant's implied request to re-open the
prior application because claimant alleged no new and
material evidence which could have changed the prior
decision. See 20 C.F.R. 404.957(c)(1). The decision in
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the prior application thus became final and binding. The
period through November 30, 1984, therefore, is res judicata.
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See Torres v. Secretary of Health and Human Services, 845
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F.2d 1136, 1138 (1st Cir. 1988).
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surgical procedure for a sebaceous cyst also located on
claimant's spine.
Claimant was treated at a Veterans Administration
hospital primarily in 1988. However, in January 1986,
claimant was seen for back pain. The legible portion of the
medical report indicates that the diagnosis was
musculoskeletal pain and myositis (muscle inflammation).
Medication and weight reduction were prescribed.
Although this case is not entirely free from doubt
because it involves a step 2 determination, we believe that
the record contains substantial evidence to support the ALJ's
conclusion that claimant did not carry his burden of showing
that his impairments limited his functioning in a manner that
would interfere with work-related activities. See Gonzalez-
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Ayala v. Secretary of Health and Human Services, 807 F.2d
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255, 256 (1st Cir. 1986) (per curiam). First, it seems that
claimant's diabetes is controlled with insulin and the
abscesses on claimant's back appear to have responded to
treatment. Second, there is no evidence of a disc condition
during the insured status period save the diagnosis of
myositis and claimant's subjective complaints. There also is
an absence of any records concerning a mental impairment
until the year 1988. Finally, as for claimant's high blood
pressure, there is no indication in the medical evidence that
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the physicians treating claimant believed that this condition
restricted him in any way.
The judgment of the district court is affirmed.
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