CARLA LONGERBEAM V. MICHAEL ASTRUE, No. 10-56250 (9th Cir. 2012)

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FILED NOT FOR PUBLICATION UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FEB 10 2012 MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK U .S. C O U R T OF APPE ALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT CARLA A. LONGERBEAM, Plaintiff - Appellant, No. 10-56250 D.C. No. 3:09-CV-00864-DMS-PCL v. MEMORANDUM * MICHAEL J. ASTRUE, Commissioner of Social Security, Defendant - Appellee. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of California Dana M. Sabraw, District Judge, Presiding Submitted February 8, 2012 ** Pasadena, California Before: D.W. NELSON, O SCANNLAIN, and N.R. SMITH, Circuit Judges. Carla Longerbeam appeals the denial of her application for disability insurance benefits under the Social Security Act. 42 U.S.C. § 423. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291, and we affirm. * This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3. ** The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2). We review de novo a district court s decision to affirm an Administrative Law Judge s (ALJ) denial of social security benefits. Edlund v. Massanari, 253 F.3d 1152, 1156 (9th Cir. 2001). The ALJ considered the testimony of Dr. Schorn, a non-examining physician, sufficiently. The ALJ was entitled to discount Dr. Schorn s opinion regarding Longerbeam s inability to sustain work, particularly because it was speculative and conflicted with the opinions of several other physicians who treated and examined Longerbeam. 20 C.F.R. § 404.1527(d); Thomas v. Barnhart, 278 F.3d 947, 957 (9th Cir. 2002); see also Holohan v. Massanari, 246 F.3d 1195, 1202 (9th Cir. 2001); Lester v. Chater, 81 F.3d 821, 830 (9th Cir. 1996). No further explanation of the weight given to Dr. Schorn s testimony was required. In addition, ample medical evidence supports the ALJ s determination that Longerbeam s limitations do not rise to the level of a disability under the Social Security Act. AFFIRMED. 2

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