Yeah, but it'd still be practical to be able to center the AoE on a character in the midst of combat. You could do this with AoE spells/abilities/items in at least NWN2 and DA: O. Also, if you select the heal, and then take your cursor to the portraits, it will highlight the character you're hovering over, making it seem like you're targeting them.
I'm not saying this is a critical issue by any means, just that I know I'll get frustrated by it because it's so hardwired in to my spine.
I also wouldn't mind if the queue was behind a modifier, just so long as it was visible, or at the least, the current action and assigned action were more prominent in the HUD somewhere.