It’s the only vote that matters, says a friend.

That one vote is for the leader of the Progressive Conservative party in Alberta. That person gets to be premier.

So is it OK to buy a membership to vote for the next PC leader Oct. 1 if you’re not a conservative? We determined it is.

But consider this: Alberta’s biggest budget item is health care. So I looked up poll favourite Gary Mar’s platform on health care, both on video and online. There’s no mention of private care at all. That’s good.

When I consider my family’s dental bills and eyeglasses costs and U.S. bankruptcies because of medical bills, I’m afraid of private health care.

In an ad flyer for private Calgary clinic Pivotal, Dr. Donovan Kreutzer says, “It’s not just an option for the wealthy.”

So a $3,600 to $3,900 yearly adult fee isn’t for the wealthy? That kind of language makes me nervous.

I know people who pay for private clinics. They are rich, not surprisingly. They like them. The affluent are a small percentage of the population, yet influential. They generously donate to hospitals and to research that serves everyone.

Will we get that if the affluent have opted out?

That private-care ad supplement also cites a “ticking time bomb” for wait times and includes fear-mongering statistics. Yet the Pivotal clinic bills the public health system and any other private-employer insurance for services.

Consider this: It costs $112,000 yearly to educate one medical student at U of C. Of that, $98,000 is chipped in by the taxpayer every year.

Will private doctors refund the public purse for their $300,000 plus tuition subsidy? You tell me. Further, the investment comes with freedom to leave and work anywhere.

No system is perfect. I’m sure medical staff feel they are worth more. I’d like to see our next premier carefully weigh the advantages of public and private care without ideological rhetoric. Without bowing to private interests.

With medical care, we make a collective bet. If there’s an upside to private care for every Albertan, let’s see it. If the public system fails most of us, let’s figure out what it can do and what it can’t.

That’s why I think it’s worth it for all Calgarians to pay $5 for a membership, vote for the PC leader and demand clear details about health care.

– Contact Janice Pasky at calgaryurbancompass@metronews.ca