@oratio – but you leave out one important facet…the advance of technology. I forget what “law” it is (Moore’s maybe?) that says computing technology doubles every 18 months, which means after 36 years, our technology is about 2.1 million times as advanced as it was in 1973. So, if you took that number into the $28.7M figure, you’d end up with the $13.72 man.
Of course however, this assumes that the rate of inflation in the medical field (as it would be doctors doing these surgeries) is the same as the standard inflation rate, and we all know that medical expenses have gone up faster than pretty much any other area of our economy. To really know the answer to this, you’d need to know how much of the $6M was technology, how much was the cost of the surgery and how much were the materials.
I’m gonna say, if Steve Austin has insurance, maybe $50, if not, about half a mil.