Assuming the numbers in [1] are correct, the answer to "How many lives have actually been saved by this" is, what, somewhere around 4-5000 (~300 a year for 15 years + some extra)?

More interesting is that it took a long time for it to drop after the legislation was introduced in 1998 - presumably people were still working off their stockpiles?

[1] https://www.statista.com/statistics/471227/death-by-paraceta...