In March 2020, the "Tallahassee Democrat" reported that Gillum was one of three men, one of whom was suffering from a drug overdose, who were found with "plastic baggies of suspected crystal meth" in a hotel room in Miami Beach, however no arrests were made. The person who overdosed has been reported by numerous outlets as a gay male escort. Initially, Gillum was too inebriated to speak with the officers. On March 16, Gillum stated that he would enter rehabilitation, citing struggles with alcohol after narrowly losing the 2018 Florida gubernatorial race.