Doctor Who Treated Prince Fined For Illegal Prescription

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The Minnesota doctor who illegally prescribed Prince opioid painkillers a week before the singer’s death has agreed to pay $30,000 (USD) in a civil violation settlement, announced on Thursday.

Court documents of the settlement were rendered between the US Attorney’s office and Dr. Michael Todd Schulenberg. The documents also revealed that Dr. Schulenberg prescribed oxycodone for Prince under his bodyguard and close-friend Kirk Johnson's name.

The 57-year-old pop singer was found unresponsive in an elevator at his estate on April 21st, 2016. The autopsy reports found that he had died from a fentanyl overdose, which led to the lengthy investigation.

MORE: Prince Died With 'Exceedingly High' Levels Of Fentanyl

"Doctors are trusted medical professionals and, in the midst of our opioid crisis, they must be part of the solution," US Attorney Greg Brooker said in a statement. "As licensed professionals, doctors are held to a high level of accountability in their prescribing practices, especially when it comes to highly addictive painkillers... We are committed to using every available tool to stem the tide of opioid abuse.”

Along with the settlement to be paid to the US government, Schulenberg agreed to stricter requirements for reporting his prescriptions and maintaining details logs for two years, to be accessed by the DEA on demand.

During a press conference on Thursday, attorney Mark Metz announced that Prince’s overdose was accidental caused by taking counterfeit pills.

"Prince had no idea he was taking a counterfeit pill that could kill him," Metz said. “There is no evidence showing how he obtained that counterfeit pill. Because of that, there will be no criminal charges filed in the case.”