Shopping for an MRI scan? Guroo.org, won't yet show you what your local hospital or radiologist charges, but it will reveal the average cost of the test in your area. iStockphoto hide caption

Shopping for an MRI scan? Guroo.org, won't yet show you what your local hospital or radiologist charges, but it will reveal the average cost of the test in your area.

Buying health care in America is like shopping blindfolded at Macy's and getting the bill months after you leave the store, Princeton economist Uwe Reinhardt likes to say.

But an online tool that went live Wednesday is supposed to help change that, giving patients in most parts of the country a small peek at the prices of medical tests and procedures before they open their wallets.

Got a sore knee? Having a baby? Need a primary-care doctor? Shopping for an MRI scan?

A website called Guroo.org shows the average local cost for 70 common diagnoses and medical tests in most states. It's showing the real cost not the published charges, which often get marked down based on a giant database of what insurance companies actually pay.

OK, this isn't like Priceline.com for knee replacements. What Guroo hopes to do for consumers is still limited.

It won't reflect costs for particular hospitals or doctors, although officials say that's coming, in some cases. And it doesn't yet have much to say about the quality of care.

Still, consumer advocates say Guroo should shed new light on the nation's opaque, complex and maddening medical bazaar.

"This has the potential to be a game changer," said Katherine Hempstead, who analyzes health insurance for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. "It's good for uninsured people. It's good for people with high deductibles. It's good for any person [who is] kind of wondering: If I go to see the doctor for such-and-such, what might happen next?"

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Attention, Shoppers: Prices For 70 Health Care Procedures Now Online!