Summary: this case involved the claim of a 62 year old woman with common variable immune deficiency, resulting in chronic and unpredictable diarrhea and nausea
Client profile: 62 year old female
Education: 2 years college
Past work: executive for pharmaceutical company
Claim background: my client filed for benefits in October, 2010. A hearing was held in November, 2012.
Medical background: my client has had regular treatment with a gastroenterologist as well as an inmunologist. Her condition involves a loss of function of her immune system which mostly impacts her gastrointestinal system. She regularly receives gamma globulin infusions and has tried numerous medications but none of this treatment has resulted in a significant reduction of her symptoms, which include chronic diarrhea, often occurring 6 to 8 times per day, nausea and bouts of vomiting.
Factors in our favor:
- my client’s medical condition is well documented and all of the evidence in the file reflects a significant level of symptoms
- my client has a long work history at a well paying job
- the judge assigned to our case has a higher than average pay rate
Factors not in our favor:
- CVID is a somewhat rare condition that may not be well known to many judges
- my clients symptoms are self reported to her physicians
My strategy: I felt that this was a strong case in that my client’s medical problems were well documented and because the medical record supported my client’s assertions of chronic diarrhea and nausea. Further the medical literature I researched on the Internet also indicated that nausea and gastrointestinal symptoms are common in CVID patients. My client is very well spoken and I felt that she would make a strong witness in a solid case.
Hearing Report: the judge opened the hearing by introducing himself and the hearing assistant. He did not call a vocational witness in this case. The judge accepted the evidence into the record and asked me for an opening statement. I offered a brief overview of CVID and explained in detail the symptoms that my client was experiencing. I specifically noted that she experienced bouts of diarrhea at least 6 to 8 times per day and that each time she would need to stay in the restroom for at least 10 minutes.
The judge then turned to the claimant and asked her to confirm my description of her symptoms. She acknowledge that she was afflicted as I had described, and the judge stated that he was prepared to accept her testimony and would be approving this case.
Conclusions: this was a well documented case of a rare but debilitating disease. The judge quickly recognized that my client was a credible witness and that her symptoms were such that she could not reliably function in a competitive work environment because of her reduced functional capacity for work.