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September 25, 2026

UPMC Yields to Trump, County Bans Big Data Centers & Goodbye Millennial Gray?

City Cast Pittsburgh

UPMC Yields to Trump, County Bans Big Data Centers & Goodbye Millennial Gray?

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UPMC just placed a decade-long moratorium on gender-affirming care for patients under 19 and agreed to pay the federal government $950,000 as part of a settlement with the Department of Justice. Host Megan Harris is with City Cast contributors Sophia Lo and Colin Williams to talk about what comes next. Plus, we're debating whether Pittsburgh Paint Company's 2027 color of the year truly counts as a departure from Millennial Gray, discussing a new ban on large-scale data centers on county property, and bemoaning the influencer stunt that led the Star Wars vending machine on a cross-country journey. And in our members-only bonus segment, Colin shares what he learned about the future of journalism on a recent trip to Germany — and the successes that could be duplicated here in Pittsburgh.

Notes and references from today’s show:

  • UPMC to pay DOJ nearly $1M, agrees to 10-year moratorium on gender-affirming care for trans youth [WESA]
  • Under pressure from Trump, UPMC canceled a trans patient's scheduled top surgery [City Paper]
  • Pittsburgh Paints' 2027 Color of the Year calls for homeowners to 'recalibrate' [WESA]
  • Sophia's Color Swatches
  • A Behind-the-Scenes Look at How PPG Paints Decides Its Color of the Year [Architectural Digest]
  • Orange Era [n+1]
  • Allegheny County Council unanimously bans large data centers on county property [TribLive]
  • Pa. approves steep rate hikes for 2027 Pennie health insurance plans [TribLive]
  • "Star Wars" vending machine visits Los Angeles [Axios Pittsburgh]

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Learn more about the sponsors of this Friday, September 25th episode:

Carnegie Library

The Frick Pittsburgh

Hazelwood Local

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