Prince Reportedly ‘Willingly’ Contacted Dr. Howard Kornfeld About Substance Abuse Treatment Before Death

Rumors have been swirling about Prince’s possible addiction to prescription painkillers — namely Percocet — since his shocking death on April 21. While the “Purple Rain” singer’s lawyer, L. Londell McMillan, maintains that Prince lived a clean and healthy lifestyle, Dr. Howard Kornfeld and his legal team are telling a very different story.

According to a report in the New York Times, Prince sought treatment of his own volition. A source told the publication that the 57-year-old reached out himself to Dr. Kornfeld, an opioid addiction specialist at Recovery Without Walls. The call for help was reportedly prompted by friends and family but entirely Prince’s choice. While he supposedly wanted to be treated for his addictions, he wanted it to remain a secret. A source said that Prince would drive himself to and from appointments to avoid allowing his assistant in on his “secret.”

Dr. Kornfeld’s ties to Prince have been called into question since it was first reported that the physician’s son, Andrew — who is not a licensed medical professional — was the one who found the late singer’s body. Andrew was reportedly at Prince’s Paisley Park mansion, outside Minneapolis, on the morning he died because the singer had been scheduled to meet with Kornfeld's father. When Prince failed to show up at the meeting, Andrew was sent in for reinforcements. A lawyer for the Kornfeld family addressed Andrew’s presence in Prince’s home on Wednesday, claiming he was only there to explain his father’s practice to the musician. Andrew is said to have been carrying Suboxone — a synthetic opiate — on him at the time because he was transporting it to another doctor. He reportedly did not administer any to Prince prior to his death nor did he intend to.

While the internet buzzes about Prince’s potential opiate problem, his family has been busy trying to solve issues of their own. The pop icon reportedly died without a will outlining plans for his estate, which was initially valued at $300 million. Prince’s sister Tyka Nelson has filed paperwork with local courts in the hopes that she will be named administrator of the estate, though it seems she won’t be granted such a title without a fight from her five half-siblings.

The family faced off in court Monday for the first time, agreeing to leave the bank — Bremer Trust — in charge of the estate for now. Fox News 9 Twin Cities (KMSP-TV) reported that the hearing lasted 12 minutes and while there was discussion of a will potentially being housed in an unopened safe inside Prince’s home, it remains unclear whether the judge plans to order the vessel be opened for investigation.

Both Minnesota and government officials are investigating Prince’s death. Little is known about the exact cause of his passing at this time.