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Staff Report United States Senate COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS How Some Legal, Medical, and Judicial Professionals Abused Social Security Disability Programs for the Country’s Most Vulnerable: A Case Study of the Conn Law Firm STAFF REPORT COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS UNITED STATES SENATE RELEASED IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS OCTOBER 7, 2013 HEARING SENATOR TOM CARPER Chairman SENATOR TOM COBURN, M.D. Ranking Minority Member Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs SENATOR CARL LEVIN Chairman SENATOR JOHN McCAIN Ranking Minority Member Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs KEITH ASHDOWN Staff Director to the Minority CHRISTOPHER J. BARKLEY Deputy Staff Director to the Minority ANDREW C. DOCKHAM Chief Counsel to the Minority KATHRYN EDELMAN Senior Investigator to the Minority REBECCA N. NUZZI Research Associate to the Minority BILLY EASLEY II MARTIN HARMS GABRIELLE D’ADAMO SINGER LESLIE SCHMIDT JACKIE JONES Law Clerks to the Minority RICHARD KESSLER Staff Director to the Majority PETER TYLER Senior Professional Staff to the Majority Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs ELISE J. BEAN Staff Director & Chief Counsel DANIEL J. GOSHORN Counsel HENRY J. KERNER Staff Director & Chief Counsel to the Minority STEPHANIE HALL Counsel to the Minority MARY D. McKOY Former Detailee Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations 10/4/13 Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs 340 Dirksen Senate Office Building – Washington, D.C. 20510 Minority: 202/224-4751 Web Address: http://www.hsgac.senate.gov How Some Legal, Medical, and Judicial Professionals Abused Social Security Disability Programs for the Country’s Most Vulnerable: A Case Study of the Conn Law Firm TABLE OF CONTENTS I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY. 1 a. Investigation Overview. ... 3 b. Findings . .. 4 c. Recommendations . .. 7 II. INTRODUCTION . .. 9 III. SSA PRESSURED ALJS TO DECIDE A HIGH NUMBER OF CASES, BUT FAILED TO ENSURE THEY PRODUCED QUALITY DECISIONS . .. 14 a. The Agency Encouraged ALJs to Decide High Numbers of Cases . .. 14 b. The Agency Encouraged ALJs to Decide Cases On-the-Record to Reduce the Hearing Backlog. .. 16 c. Judge Daugherty Used Agency Policies to Approve a High Number of Cases. .. 17 d. Huntington ODAR Management Focused on Production Numbers Despite Office Morale Problems. ... 18 i. Huntington ODAR Management Prioritized the “Numbers” . .. 19 ii. “Boot Camp Mentality” Led Huntington ODAR to Become a Top Producing Office Despite Morale Problems. ... 20 iii. The Agency Transferred Over 1,000 Cases to Huntington ODAR for Adjudication. ... 22 IV. ONE LAWYER REPRESENTED A DISPROPORTIONATE NUMBER OF CLAIMANTS BEFORE THE HUNTINGTON ALJS. .. 23 a. Mr. Conn’s Practice Focused on Representing Claimants for Disability Benefits . .. 23 b. Mr. Conn Used an Aggressive Marketing Campaign to Recruit Claimants. ... 24 V. HOCALJ ANDRUS MADE SPECIAL SCHEDULING ARRANGEMENTS FOR MR. CONN’S CASES. ... 27 a. Mr. Conn Filtered Out-of-Town Claimants through Huntington ODAR. .. 32 b. Judge Daugherty Coordinated with Mr. Conn to Award Benefits On-the-Record and Without Hearings. .. 34 c. Against Agency Rules, Judge Daugherty Took Cases Assigned to Other ALJs and Awarded Benefits On-the-Record and Without Hearings. .. 37 VI. JUDGE DAUGHERTY CANCELLED 30 HEARINGS AND AWARDED BENEFITS TO EVERY CLAIMANT WITH OTR DECISIONS. ... 45 i VII. TO DEFLECT ATTENTION FROM CANCELLED HEARINGS, JUDGE DAUGHERTY ACCUSED JUDGE ANDRUS OF IMPROPER SOCIAL CONTACTS WITH MR. CONN . .. 49 VIII. MR. CONN MOVED TO DISMISS CLAIMS JUDGE GITLOW INDICATED HE WOULD DENY. .. 51 a. Judge Gitlow Indicated to Mr. Conn He Planned to Deny a Claim. .. 51 b. Mr. Conn Garnered Favor from Judge Gitlow . ... 54 IX. MR. CONN POTENTIALLY FABRICATED CONSULTATIVE EXAMS, RESULTING IN AWARDED DISABILITY BENEFITS. .. 55 X. LAWYERS RELIED ON DOCTORS THEY KNEW WOULD PROVIDE EVIDENCE OF CLAIMANT DISABILITY. .. 57 a. Doctors Known to Provide Opinions Stating the Claimant is Disabled Were Known as "Whore Doctors." . .. 57 b. Doctors Employed by Mr. Conn Provided Questionable Medical Evidence. .. 58 i. Dr. Frederic Huffnagle . .. 58 ii. Dr. David P. Herr, D.O. .. 64 iii. Dr. Brad Adkins, Ph.D. ... 66 iv. Dr. Srinivas Ammisetty . ... 72 c. Other Doctors Provided Reviews of Claimants at the Request of Mr. Conn. .. 75 i. Phil Pack, M.S. .. 75 ii. Dr. Syed Ikramuddin . ... 76 iii. The Potter Clinic . ... 77 d. Mr. Conn’s Attorney Explained the Use of Supplemental Medical Opinions. .. 78 e. Judge Daugherty Appeared to Rely Exclusively on the Opinions of Mr. Conn’s Doctors to Award Disability Benefits. ... 79 f. Analysis of Cases Decided by Judge Daugherty on the “DB Lists” . .. 80 i. Review of Claimants’ Case Files on DB Lists . ... 80 ii. Summary Analysis of Findings . .. 81 iii. Judge Daugherty Used Templated Language in Written Decisions . .. 82 iv. Judge Daugherty Overturned Prior ALJ Decisions . ... 84 XI. ALJS, LAWYERS, AND DOCTORS ALL PERSONALLY BENEFITED FROM THE APPROVAL OF HIGH NUMBERS OF CLAIMS. ... 87 a. Mr. Conn Earned Over $4.5 Million in Attorney Fees From the DB Lists and Became the Third Highest Grossing Disability Attorney Nationwide. .. 87 b. Judge Daugherty’s Financial Records Include Unreported Income from An Undisclosed Source. ... 88 c. Mr. Conn’s Doctors were Paid for Providing Medical Opinions. .. 92 d. Huntington ODAR Employees Received Bonuses and Salary Increases. .. 93 ii XII. THE AGENCY FAILED TO PREVENT ABUSES OF THE DISABILITY PROGRAMS IN HUNTINGTON ODAR. .. 95 a. Judge Daugherty’s Time and Attendance Problems Overlooked. .. 95 b. Judge Andrus Used Time and Attendance to Push a Low Producing ALJ out of the Agency.. 103 c. The Agency was Aware of Judge Daugherty’s Conduct for Years, but Took No Action. .. 108 XIII. AGENCY RESPONSE TO PUBLIC ALLEGATIONS OF MISCONDUCT IN HUNTINGTON . .. 109 a. The Wall Street Journal Exposed Judge Daugherty’s Relationship with Mr. Conn. .. 109 b. Mr. Conn and Judge Daugherty Continued to Communicate, Potentially By Pre-paid Cellular Phones. ... 113 c. Judge Daugherty Placed on Administrative Leave . .. 114 d. Chief Administrative Law Judge Debra Bice Removed Judge Andrus as Hearing Office Chief Administrative Law Judge. .. 115 e. Judge Andrus and Mr. Conn Worked Together to Target a Perceived Whistleblower. ... 116 f. Mr. Conn Destroyed Disability Claimants’ Medical Records and Office Computers. ... 121 g. SSA Approved the Purchase of Shredders for Huntington Management. ... 123 XIV. MR. CONN SOUGHT TO GAIN FAVOR WITH HUNTINGTON ALJS AND KENTUCKY STATE COURT JUDGES . .. 124 a. Mr. Conn Produced a Music CD for a Sitting Kentucky State Court Judge. ... 124 b. Mr. Conn Attempted to Skirt State Election Campaign Laws. .. 125 APPENDIX I: SUMMARY OF A SAMPLE OF ERIC CONN CLAIMANT CASE FILES DECIDED FAVORABLY BY JUDGE DAUGHERTY. .. 127 1. Medical Opinions Procured by Mr. Conn Were Inconsistent with Other Medical Evidence. .. 127 2. Awards Based on Medical Conditions Discovered by Mr. Conn’s Doctors . .. 133 3. Judge Daugherty Failed to Address Claimant Noncompliance . .. 141 4. Judge Daugherty Failed to Assess Evidence of Drug and Alcohol Abuse. .. 146 5. Factual Inaccuracies in Judge Daugherty’s Decisions and Misuse of Medical Opinions. .. 149 6. Reassignment of Cases from Judge Gitlow to Judge Daugherty. .. 153 APPENDIX II: MONTHLY BREAKDOWN OF MR. CONN’S DISABILITY CLAIMANTS LISTED ON THE DB LIST AND FEES EARNED. ... 158 APPENDIX III: PETTY CASH WITHDRAWALS MADE FROM THE CONN LAW FIRM BANK ACCOUNT . .. 160 iii HOW SOME LEGAL, MEDICAL, AND JUDICIAL PROFESSIONALS ABUSED SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY PROGRAMS FOR THE COUNTRY’S MOST VULNERABLE: A CASE STUDY OF THE CONN LAW FIRM I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In 1993, Eric Christopher Conn opened a legal practice in a small trailer next door to his boyhood home in rural Eastern Kentucky. Located in Stanville, Kentucky, along Highway 23, his office was two hours from the closest major city and over an hour from the Social Security’s main regional office in Huntington, West Virginia. Despite operating in a sparsely populated town of 500, Mr. Conn would go on to build one of the largest and most.
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