Kate Sheppard illustrates how the federal government sees us:
Though calculating the "value of a statistical life" (VSL) may sound callous or morbid, it can lead to stronger safety and environmental regulations. For example, auto safety rules that would cost $100 million to implement but might protect $500 million worth of lives (say, 100 people at $5 million a pop) are seen as a good deal, cost-benefit-wise.
The chart she provides shows "the feds currently think [that] each of us is worth somewhere between $5 million and $9.1 million."
The Dish 