Singer Demi Lovato was hospitalized after an apparent heroin overdose and is currently being treated at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
A representative for Lovato said in a statement that Lovato is currently awake with her family but, “Some of the information being reported is incorrect and they respectfully ask for privacy and not speculation as her health and recovery is the most important thing right now.”
The Los Angeles Fire Department confirmed with CNN that it transported a 25-year-old woman to a hospital after it received a call at 11:22 a.m. on July 26 for a medical emergency.
Lovato, 25, was open about her past history with drug and alcohol abuse. She suffered from a mental health disorder as well as an eating disorder in addition to the substance abuse. She candidly talked about being sober for six years as of March.
However, the popstar recently released a single titled, “Sober,” last month in which she reveals she had relapsed.
Lovato was scheduled to perform in Atlantic City, New Jersey on Thursday but the show has since been cancelled. Her last performance was at the California Mid-State Fair in Paso Robles, California on July 22.
Celebrities are not exempt from struggling with mental health disorders and substance abuse. As Lovato deals with her overdose on a public level, many addicts are not likened to such highly-publicized accounts of their struggles.
Earlier this summer, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a report on the opioid epidemic plaguing the country. An estimated 116 people die each day from an opioid overdose, according the the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, along with HHS, issued a five-point strategy to combat the devastating effects of opioid abuse in the country. Further details can be found here.