Rick Ross is in a Miami area hospital getting treatment in the cardiac unit a strong sign he might have suffered a heart attack which manifested itself as respiratory issues early Thursday morning. Ross’ former girlfriend and mother of his child, William Roberts III, tells PEOPLE, “Pray for him.”
Fellow hip-hop artist Fat Trel updated fans on Ross’ health, writing, “JUS TALKED 2 MY BIG HOMIE… HE GOOD… HE IN DA HOSPITAL BUT HE IS NOT ON ‘LIFE SUPPORT’ … HE GOOD.”
TMZ reported that the patient was transported to the hospital via ambulance and received respiratory treatment. A family member “strongly denied” the report of the hospitalization to the website, however TMZ has since updated to claim Ross is on an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation machine (ECMO) and may have suffered a heart attack.
Ross has had a history of seizures, suffering two within six hours of each other in 2011 (his private jet was required to make an emergency landing each time).
In the wake of the health scares, the musician reevaluated his lifestyle of weighing 350 lbs., sleeping for just three hours a night, and pounding back 24-oz. steaks at 4 a.m. As he told Men’s Health in its September 2016 issue, he changed his diet and incorporated exercise into his days — losing 75 lbs.
“I’m happy,” Ross said. “I’m still losing weight, and now I’m starting to build hard muscle in places.”