Despite a history of drug problems and allegations that his death was linked to a massive prescription drug ring, actor Corey Haim died of natural causes from a combination of pneumonia and respiratory and heart trouble, according to a coroner’s report released Tuesday.
Haim died March 10, at the age of 38, at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, California.
According to the coroner’s office, Haim died of diffuse alveolar damage and community acquired pneumonia, along with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy with coronary arteriosclerosis.
Toxicology tests found “no significant contributing factors,” the coroner’s office reported.
At the time of his death, police said the Canadian actor — who had a history of drug troubles — may have died of an overdose, but no illegal drugs were found at the apartment he shared with his mother in the 3600 block of Barham Boulevard.
Ed Winter of the coroner’s office said on the day of Haim’s death that four bottles of prescription medications were found in the apartment.
According to Winter, Haim’s mother found her son in distress at about 1:30am, and he collapsed with flu-like symptoms when he got out of bed. She called paramedics and he was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 2:15am, Winter said.
Two days after Haim’s death, state Attorney General Jerry Brown announced that Haim’s death had been linked to an “illegal and massive prescription-drug ring.” Brown said an unauthorized prescription in the actor’s name was found during a probe of phony prescription pads ordered from a San Diego vendor.
According to Brown’s office, a report by the state’s Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement found that in the month before his death, Haim visited seven doctors and seven pharmacies to obtain more than 550 doses of prescription drugs, including dangerous narcotics.
Corey Ian Haim was born in Toronto in 1971. His first film was “Firstborn” in 1984. Roles followed, including “Murphy’s Romance” and “Silver Bullet” in 1985, “Lucas” in 1986, and “The Lost Boys” in 1987.
Haim more recently collaborated with Corey Feldman in the reality show “The Two Coreys,” which aired on the A&E Network in 2007 and 2008.