Another great musician has allegedly died due to a drug overdose. According to information provided by law enforcement officials to AP, Prince died of an opioid overdose.
The law enforcement official, who has investigated Prince’s death, would not reveal his name because he was unauthorized to speak to the media. Prince was found dead on April 21 at his Paisley Park estate in the Minneapolis area.
His death came shortly after it was reported that he struggled with the flu for weeks before his death. However, the issue of drug use was also a speculation by some. Prince experienced pain due to years of jumping on stages while wearing heels or platform shoes. At some point, it’s believed that he developed an addiction to painkillers.
The issue of opioid abuse stands as an American problem. “Many of the heroin users began their addiction by taking painkillers and opioids,” says Mona Bennett co-founder of the Atlanta Harm Reduction Coalition. “Opioids are effective pain killers. But what kind of pain are people in where they are needing to try to find something else to relieve that pain? What physical and mental issues are going undiagnosed and causing this self medication? Let’s start there.”
President Barack Obama recently revealed how opioid abuse has changed how drug addiction is viewed. “Part of what has made it previously difficult to emphasize treatment over the criminal justice system has to do with the fact that the populations affected in the past were viewed as, or stereotypically identified as poor, minority, and as a consequence, the thinking was it is often a character flaw in those individuals who live in those communities, and it’s not our problem they’re just being locked up.And I think that one of the things that’s changed in this opioid debate is a recognition that this reaches everybody,” President Obama said during a recent panel discussion at the National Prescription Drug Abuse and Heroin Summit.
Although Prince’s death was allegedly caused by an opioid overdose, an official statement has yet to be released. Prince’s family and friends often said the singer was drug free.
