[dghlsakjg]

There are plenty of surgeries and medical procedures where pricing is upfront, clear, and competitive.

What they all have in common is that these are procedures that are not covered by insurance. Cosmetic surgery and other elective procedures are all easily cross-shopped.

It would appear that insurance is a significant part of the problem

[mwerd]

Agreed. Insurance, Medicare in particular, is the root of these issues, from my biased insider's perspective. Doctors don't want to deal with insurance any more than consumers do...