Summary
excising from previous opinion the statement: "We have made clear, however, that ALJs are not qualified to evaluate medical records themselves, but must rely on expert opinions."
Summary of this case from Steinbeck v. BerryhillOpinion
No. 17-1954
04-13-2018
ALEJANDRO MORENO, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. NANCY BERRYHILL, Acting Commissioner of Social Security, Defendant-Appellee.
Before WILLIAM J. BAUER, Circuit Judge KENNETH F. RIPPLE, Circuit Judge DIANE S. SYKES, Circuit Judge Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division. No. 1:15-cv-11168 Sidney I. Schenkier, Magistrate Judge.
ORDER
The Acting Commissioner of Social Security has filed a petition for panel rehearing in which she requests that the panel delete one sentence of the opinion issued on February 16, 2018. The sentence, which appears on page 13 of the slip opinion, states: "We have made clear, however, that ALJs are not qualified to evaluate medical records themselves, but must rely on expert opinions." The Acting Commissioner suggests that, when severed from its factual context, the sentence could be read as holding that ALJs are forbidden in all circumstances from independently evaluating medical records. She therefore requests that we substitute the following, more tailored language: "That assessment was not justified under the circumstances of this case."
The petition is granted. The sentence suggested by the Acting Secretary will be substituted as requested and is reflected in the attached amended opinion.