What is the monetary value of a human life?

Forums: Philosophy
Email this Topic • Print this Page

If a single life had infinite value, then one life would be equal to millions of lives. Yet most people don't equate one life to millions, therefor most people don't intrinsically consider life to have an infinite value.

But if it doesn't have an infinite value, then it must have some value. What is that value?

For example, what if a health care system had to choose between saving a single life at the cost of millions (or billions), or using that money to help countless other lives? Which should they choose, and what dollar threshold would guide the choice?

Hospitals have limited budgets, and so do societies. In essence we make a valuation on human life every day by virtue of the amount of money spent on certain health care activities and distribution of services.

Topic Stats
Top Replies
Link to this Topic

Type: Discussion • Score: 2 • Views: 1,557 • Replies: 12

No top replies

Between 1 and 10 million dollars based on the money states are willing to spend on transportation safety improvements.

Quote:

What is the value of a human life? About $1.54 million, according to economists Orley Ashenfelter of Princeton University and Michael Greenstone of the University of Chicago. At least, that is what it appears to be in the context of setting public policy about highway safety.

I seem to recall a figure of about 2 or 3 million UK pounds (around 6 million dollars) being used in a similar UK study concerned with rail safety. That is, a safety improvement to rail equipment was deemed cost-effective if the lives (theoretically) saved during the life of that equipment cost less each than that sum.

However, you have various factors, political as well as economic, to consider. One teen dying of leukemia, now, on TV, is different from someone who might or might not die in a train crash sometime over the next 10 years.

0 Replies

After 9/11, funds were given to victims' families. One man had to interview families and put a figure on each person's los and award a "value" to the surviving family members.

I have forgotten his name, but he wrote a book about it. Facinating. Changed his life.

Anyone know this author and the book?

0 Replies

If I am killed by somebody's negligence, it is open to my dependents to sue that person or company for the earnings I would have expected to earn over my lifetime. If a young doctor dies his family would get more money than if he was a 60 year old janitor.

0 Replies

So, if a person has no dependents, his life is without value?

0 Replies

contrex wrote:

Between 1 and 10 million dollars based on the money states are willing to spend on transportation safety improvements.

Quote:
What is the value of a human life? About $1.54 million, according to economists Orley Ashenfelter of Princeton University and Michael Greenstone of the University of Chicago. At least, that is what it appears to be in the context of setting public policy about highway safety.

That's interesting. I didn't know a number had already been arrived at. I thought this question would generate more debate.

Thanks for the replies so far everyone Smile

0 Replies

roger wrote:

So, if a person has no dependents, his life is without value?

No, it's just a different calculation. More info here:
http://accident-law.freeadvice.com/wrongful_death/wrongful-death-suit.htm

0 Replies

roger wrote:

So, if a person has no dependents, his life is without value?

Without measurable value. A principle of the law in this area (at least in the UK) is that you get compensated for your reasonably calculated losses, no more, no less. If you have no dependents, who's entitled to sue? Nobody.

0 Replies

It also depends where you live. In the United States, the value of your
life is considered a lot higher than if you were to live in China, Somalia or any other third world country.

0 Replies

CalamityJane wrote:

It also depends where you live. In the United States, the value of your
life is considered a lot higher than if you were to live in China, Somalia or any other third world country.

That is a remark that could be taken a number of ways, some of them quite unpleasant.

0 Replies

Dollar value? Maybe $9,000 to get rid of one if he/she doesn't know it's coming. Last time I looked, blue-collar plans regularly pay $2-Million to keep 'em rolling.

Average net-worth? Whatever it is, it's got to be approaching zero.

So of the two, which is the scarier thought?

0 Replies

Idiots are hardest to put a price on.
They are high in demand, but exist in abundance.

You can get one for nothing, but if you have a lot of them they're worth plenty of money.
Twisted Evil

0 Replies

I don't think a human has any monetary value. In my opinion we are worth the same but people measure others by how much they can contribute to society. when it comes to how much should be spent on a human, I don't think the money spent IS the person's value but his country's ability to help that person. For example, a very rich country might spend a lot of money while some third world country may not spend money at all. Rolling Eyes

0 Replies

What is the monetary value of a human life?

Related Topics

Quick Links

My Account

able2know