Not confirmed by him, but he took a break from work to call DH, in a job where this is frowned up and he is actually quite upset, bless him (DH and he are in their mid 30s, Jacko a major part of their growing up). I know that does not mean much, but he is not normally someone who pays attention to 'gossip', but not sure where he got his info from.
It is probably true, and a long time coming - he has been unwell for a long time hasn't he?