Pike v. Hartford Life & Accident Ins. Co.

368 F.Supp.3d 1018

Gina PIKE

v.HARTFORD LIFE AND ACCIDENT INSURANCE COMPANY

Civil No. 4:17CV772

United States District Court, E.D. Texas, Sherman Division.

Signed March 27, 2019

MEMORANDUM ADOPTING REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION OF THE UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

AMOS L. MAZZANT, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

The above-entitled and numbered civil action was heretofore referred to United States Magistrate Judge Caroline M. Craven pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636. On January 31, 2019, the Magistrate Judge issued a Report and Recommendation, finding for Plaintiff under recommended findings of fact and conclusions of law pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 52(a). Dkt. # 33. Defendant Hartford Life and Accident Insurance Company ("Defendant") filed objections to the Report and Recommendation. Plaintiff Gina Pike ("Plaintiff") filed a response to the objections. Pursuant to the Magistrate Judge's March 1, 2019 Order, Defendant filed a reply and Plaintiff filed a surreply. The Court conducts a de novo review of the Magistrate Judge's recommended findings and conclusions.

BACKGROUND

This Employee Retirement Income Security Act ("ERISA") action concerns the termination of Plaintiff's long term disability ("LTD") benefits pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 1132 (a)(1)(B).¹ Defendant issued an insurance policy, identified as Hartford policy number GLT-675193 ("the Policy"), effective January 1, 2005, describing benefits effective July 1, 2016 to Plaintiff's employer, Gambro, Inc. Plaintiff is insured for LTD benefits under the Policy. The Policy does not grant discretionary authority to the Plan Administrator or the Claims Administrator.

Defendant paid Plaintiff's claim for LTD benefits from April 24, 2008 through December 14, 2016, the period of time when Defendant determined Plaintiff met the definition of "disability" in the Policy. However, after later determining Plaintiff was unable to prove she continued to be "disabled" under the Policy, Defendant discontinued LTD benefits effective December 15, 2016. The issue is whether Plaintiff is entitled to receive LTD benefits after December 14, 2016 under the Policy. Plaintiff seeks the benefits she has been denied plus pre-judgment and post-judgment interest, recovery of attorney's fees and costs, clarification of her right to receive future benefits under the policy, and any other appropriate equitable relief. Dkt. # 1 at 3.

The parties stipulated a de novo review applies in this case.² See Dkt. # 16.

The parties then filed cross motions for judgment on the record as well as the administrative record compiled by Defendant during the administration of Plaintiff's claim (the "Agreed Administrative Record" or "AR").

FEDERAL RULE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE 52

Both parties elected to proceed pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 52, which governs actions "tried on the facts without a jury." Rule 52 requires the Court "find the facts specifically and state its conclusions of law separately." FED. R. CIV. P. 52(a).

In the Fifth Circuit, "Rule 52(a) does not require that the district court set out [its] findings on all factual questions that arise in a case." Koenig v. Aetna Life Ins. Co. , No. 4:13-CV-0359, 2015 WL 6554347, at *3 (S.D. Tex. Oct. 29, 2015), aff'd sub nom. N. Cypress Med. Ctr. Operating Co., Ltd. v. Aetna Life Ins. Co. , 898 F.3d 461 (5th Cir. 2018) (quoting Valley v. Rapides Parish Sch. Bd. , 118 F.3d 1047, 1054 (5th Cir.1997) (citing Golf City, Inc. v. Wilson Sporting Goods Co., Inc. , 555 F.2d 426, 433 (5th Cir.1977) ) ). Nor does it demand "punctilious detail [or] slavish tracing of the claims issue by issue and witness by witness." Koenig , 2015 WL 6554347, at *3 (citations omitted). Rather, a court's "[f]indings [are sufficient to] satisfy Rule 52 if they afford the reviewing court a clear understanding of the factual basis for the trial court's decision." Id. (citations omitted).

According to courts outside the Fifth Circuit, using Rule 52 is effective in the ERISA context because courts may resolve factual disputes and issue legal findings without the parties resorting to cross motions for summary judgment. Tran v. Minnesota Life Ins. Co. , No. 17-CV-450, 2018 WL 1156326, at *5 (N.D. Ill. Mar. 5, 2018) ; see also Kearney , 175 F.3d at 1095 (noting "the district court may try the case on the record that the administrator had before it."). In a trial on the administrative record, the district judge reviews the evidence to determine "whether [the plaintiff] is disabled within the terms of the policy." Kearney , 175 F.3d at 1095. Further, "in a trial on the record, but not on summary judgment, the judge can evaluate the persuasiveness of conflicting testimony and decide which is more likely true." Id.

REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION

After hearing oral argument on the parties' cross motions, the Magistrate Judge issued a 60-page Report and Recommendation ("R & R") on January 31, 2019, finding for Plaintiff. Dkt. # 33. The Magistrate Judge's recommended findings and conclusions are based upon the Agreed Administrative Record. Plaintiff's lengthy medical history, as well as the facts behind Defendant's termination of LTD benefits, are set forth in detail in the Recommended Findings of Fact section of the R & R and are not duplicated herein.³ Id. at 4-32.

The Magistrate Judge stated Plaintiff, to obtain LTD benefits beyond December 14, 2016, must show by a preponderance of the evidence that she cannot perform one or more essential duties of any occupation for which she is qualified. Id. at 36. Based on the Agreed Administrative Record, the Magistrate Judge concluded Plaintiff had shown she could not perform all the essential duties of any occupation for which she is reasonably qualified. Id. at 37. The Magistrate Judge summarized the medical evidence she previously set forth in detail in the Recommended Findings of Fact section of the R & R. Dkt. # 33 at 37-39. Specifically, the Magistrate Judge stated as follows:

Plaintiff has suffered from severe back pain since at least 2002, when a diagnostic lumbar discogram revealed severe pathology at her L4-5, L5-S1 intervertebral levels as well as less severe degeneration at her L3-4 level. AR 507-08. Plaintiff underwent surgery in 2002 on her L4-S1 levels and improved for a time, but she began to deteriorate in 2004. AR 521, 533-34. By 2007, Plaintiff could not sit in a chair, lie in a bed, or stand for any significant length of time. AR 521.

Plaintiff pursued aggressive surgical treatment with neurosurgeon, Robert Martin, M.D. On March 25, 2008, Dr. Martin performed an extreme interbody fusion at L3-4. AR 787-89. In July 2008, Dr. Martin stated Plaintiff could sit for no more than two hours in a day, stand for no more than two hours per day, and walk for no more than two hours per day. AR 1925. Dr. Martin further stated these limitations are permanent. AR 1925.

Still complaining of pain, Plaintiff next sought treatment with Ralph F. Rashbaum, M.D. Dr. Rashbaum diagnosed Plaintiff with "failed back surgery syndrome" and surgically implanted a spinal cord stimulator. AR 2237. The spinal cord stimulator eventually caused an increase in Plaintiff's symptoms, and Dr. Rashbaum surgically removed it in December 2012. AR 1802-03. Dr. Rashbaum recommended Plaintiff start long-term use of class II narcotics. In a "long hard conversation," Dr. Rashbaum advised Plaintiff as follows:

[S]he probably does need to try a class II medication.... I have told her in the past that she will more than likely always be on some form of pain medication, she wanted to avoid class II if possible. I think we have exhausted every other procedure and modality to try to prevent that. I am referring her now to Dr. Bernstein to see if he can find the right medication mix to help reduce her pain so that she can be more active. She wants to do so much, but is very limited physically. I have also provided her with a prescription for handicap parking placard that she can use. I think she pushes herself so far that she has been in such extreme pain that she is bedridden for 2 to 3 days.

AR 2239.

Plaintiff's care then transitioned to pain management physician Sidney Bernstein, M.D., at the Texas Back Institute. Dr. Bernstein stated Plaintiff could sit, stand, and walk for fifteen to twenty minutes at a time and could not do any of the postures for more than a total of four hours per day. AR 1905.

On February 20, 2011, Hartford management reviewed Plaintiff's claim and noted:

[Plaintiff] continues with chronic lower back and leg pain. Dr. Bernstein is managing her medications and making adjustment to help better control [her] pain. [She] is also having side effects from the meds and her weight is also of concern.... Although Dr. Bernstein notes that [Plaintiff] has the capacity to lift up to 10 lbs. frequently and up to 20 lbs. occasionally and able to frequently fingering and handling, due to chronic intractable pain she is limited to 15-20 minutes sit/stand/walk for no more than 4 hrs/day. Therefore, it is reasonable that [Plaintiff] would be unable to sustain fulltime any occ[upation] activities.

AR 926.

When Dr. Bernstein retired in December 2011, Plaintiff updated Hartford with records from her current pain management physician, Noor Gajraj, M.D. Dr. Gajraj is Board Certified in Pain Management and has treated Plaintiff for more than five years. AR 14. In the most recent Attending Physician's Statement of Disability ("APS") No. 10, dated July 10, 2015, Dr. Gajraj listed Plaintiff's primary diagnosis as lumbar degenerative disc disease and her secondary diagnosis as lumbar radiculopathy. AR 1752-53 (duplicate AR 1783-84). He listed her medications as Dilaudid and Fentanyl and her current subjective symptoms as rightsided low back pain and right leg pain and tenderness. AR 1752. He opined Plaintiff could walk, stand, and sit for fifteen to twenty minutes at a time and for no longer than four hours per day. AR 1753.

The Magistrate Judge considered the opinions of Plaintiff's treating...