I had an equal and opposite experience getting an MRI. I also have a high deductible plan. When I was told I needed an MRI I went on my insurance provider's website to find MRI locations that are in network nearby. I called the first 5 on the list. I found that some place that was basically MRI-R-US was several hundred dollars cheaper than going to the local mega-hospital.

Pricing isn't transparent because people usually aren't paying with money they perceive as their own. What do you care if your insurance company pays $200 or $2000 for that MRI? Eventually that difference shows up in the form of higher premiums, but that's far too complicated for people to respond to intelligently.

Let's go one step further and imagine a world in which we completely replaced Medicare with a catastrophic coverage system. If you have a heart attack or something we'll take care of you, but for your day to day healthcare we'll just cut you a check for however much the government was previously paying. You can choose to use that money on anything you want whether it's healthcare related or not. You want to see price transparency and the power of competition to lower prices? Boom, done.