So sad. Prince reportedly entered an outpatient treatment program shortly before his death earlier this month at the age of 57.
The “Purple Rain” singer was working to “move away from using medication prescribed to treat his severe pain,” KSTP 5 Eyewitness News reported on Wednesday, April 27. The Minneapolis station also claims Prince was seeing a doctor to help him deal with hip pain following a 2011 surgery.
Sources told the ABC affiliate that Prince’s treatment did not mean that he was addicted to controlled substances.
Earlier this week, investigators revealed that they’re currently examining whether Prince died of an overdose. A law enforcement official told the Associated Press that they were also probing whether a doctor prescribed drugs to the late icon prior to his death.
Prince was found dead in an elevator at his Paisley Park estate in Chanhassen, Minnesota, on April 21, with prescription painkillers in his possession and in his home.
The “Little Red Corvette” singer’s private plane made an emergency landing in Illinois on April 15, following a performance in Atlanta. He was allegedly administered a “save shot” and was released from a hospital shortly after.
Sheila E., Prince’s former fiancée and bandmate, previously told the AP that the Grammy winner suffered from hip problems as a result of his eccentric performances, in which he often jumped off speakers while wearing high heels.