Washington is buzzing about a recent article in The New Yorker that lays at least part of the blame for increasing health care costs on the overuse of tests, surgeries and other diagnostics without regard to whether those procedures bring us better care. Even President Obama is said to have read it.

The article has energized the debate about what’s called comparative effectiveness. In short, that’s using additional research methods and/or money to target care where it’s most effective. It’s controversial because some fear it could be used mainly as a means to use costs as a reason to deny coverage.

Getting into that debate requires too much space for this blog. But what is clear is how often policymakers who want the health care system to do a better job delivering quality care are already thinking about how to engage with the people who matter most: patients. That was obvious on Tuesday at a session at the Brookings Institution, where several speakers mentioned the need for patient engagement at its most personal level.

Leading that emphasis was Carolyn Clancy, the physician who runs perhaps the most important obscure agency in health care, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Dr. Clancy’s agency could be given increased authority under some plans for comparative effectiveness. “We have to engage the patient,” for that policy to be effective, she said. (AHRQ has a website to help providers talk to patients about improving quality: http://www.talkingquality.gov/).

“We must meaningfully engage every stakeholder,” added Dr. Sean Tunis, a former chief medical officer at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. And the AARP’s John Rother said implementing new regimes that link research with medical treatment must make sure they are relevant for “people like me.”

What does that sound like to you? Almost like it’s lifted out of the New Rules of Health Engagement. Especially rule #8 – be personal.

Washington likes to use trendy phrases like “bending the curve,” when talking about slowing health care costs. But those involved in the health business – and maybe an increasing number of regulators and policymakers – understand that it’s probably more important to talk directly to consumers about what matters most to them, and to do it frequently. The long-term success of any health care reform effort, before and after President Obama signs legislation, could depend on it.