The final Medical Examiner’s report of the late television pitchman Billy Mays, who was laid to rest early last month after he passed away in late June due to in large part to heart disease, has been completed and released to the media. The report concludes that while Mays‘s cause of death is officially “heart attack”, the use of cocaine played a factor in triggering the heart attack that killed Billy Mays. In response to the conclusions of this report, the Mays family has issued a statement attempting to respond to the findings of the final Medical Examiner’s Report, making clear that they consider the findings “speculative” at best. Here are the deets from the official autopsy report and the response statement, in full, from the Mays family:

Billy Mays’ cocaine use contributed to the cause of his death, according to an autopsy report released today. The TV pitchman had last used cocaine days prior to his death, the report states. He died from heart disease, but cocaine use was listed as a contributory cause of death because of the cumulative effect cocaine use had on his heart, the autopsy stated. Mays, 50, was found dead in Tampa on June 28. The autopsy was performed the next day. “From the presence of metabolites of cocaine and the absence of cocaine itself, it was concluded that Mr. Mays used cocaine in the few days prior to his death but not immediately prior to death,” a Hillsborough County press release states. “Cocaine can raise the arterial blood pressure, directly cause thickening of the wall of the left ventricle of the heart, and accelerate the formation of atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries.” The autopsy report doesn’t mention how much cocaine Mays used. “I don’t know that that necessarily is known,” county spokeswoman Lori Hudson said. “Clearly it was in his system. It had been used in the days prior to his death, but the exact amount over how much of a period of time, we wouldn’t have that.”

Wow!! Of all people, I am shocked to know that Billy liked blow (among other party favors listed in the Medical Examiner’s report). I mean, I always knew the guy was super hyper but I just figured that was part of his personality. After the jump, read the Mays family response to these findings by the Medical Examiner …

“We are extremely disappointed by the press release released by the Hillsborough County medical examiner’s office. We believe it contains speculative conclusions that are frankly unnecessary and tend to obscure the conclusion that Billy suffered from chronic, untreated hypertension, which only demonstrates how important it is to regularly monitor one’s health. Given the hectic nature and pace of Billy’s life, especially during the past 10 months of his exhaustive travel across the country, it was not surprising to hear that hypertension was the cause of his death. We were totally unaware of any non prescription drug usage and are actively considering an independent evaluation of the autopsy results. As those who were close to Billy knew, he had been in chronic pain for more than two years and was about to have his third hip surgery in 18 months. His use of prescription pain medication for his hip condition was guided by his physician and was at recommended usage levels. This has been a very difficult period for our family and we appreciate the respect for our privacy that Billy’s many clients, fans and members of the media have extended. We appreciate your continued thoughts and prayers for the family and will not have any immediate comment beyond this statement.”

Attributed to: Deborah Mays (widow)

Yikes! I’d be extremely disappointed if a report like this was released involving a member of my family, too. It makes sense that his family would want to issue a statement making clear that it’s possible that he died due purely to heart disease but the final autopsy report lists the following substances in his body at the time of his death — hydrocodone (Vicodin), Oxycodone (painkiller), alprazolam (Xanax), nordiazepam (Valium), benzoylecgonine (byproduct of cocaine), Temazepam (anti-anxiety) and alcohol (Ethanol). A cocktail of these substances coupled with the man’s constant on-the-go schedule clearly made for a deadly combination. It’s unfortunate that Billy Mays‘s death has to be muddied by these findings but I think it goes to show that misusing drugs can have dire consequences. So sad.

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