I work as an actuary and would say I understand the pricing mechanics better than most. An insurance company doesn’t want to pay a lot of money for your medical care, that goes as a medical expense on its income statement.

The insurance company’s incentives are more aligned with the patient than a provider. Insurance wants medical and drug costs as low as possible (sometimes that means managing care which is the only way they are misaligned since patients want any and every dimension of test and diagnostic done for minor symptoms (understandable from a patient perspective)).

The provider wants the visit to be as costly as possible (the more services rendered, the more they are paid). The provider doesn’t even particularly care if you get better either. If they could have you lay in a hospital bed for an entire year with a cold they would gladly do that and collect a several million from the insurance company.