It gives a sizeable health bonus only eclipsed by the more expensive armor items and boots. I'm not interested in +mana pool from the boots because I need helms in every game I play anyway, so it's a very valuable item.
Saying that if you take it, then I can just take it and we're even is blatantly wrong. Stats have different importance to different characters and more specifically to different builds. By making a +stat item better than the other +stat items (like Mard's Hammer for example) you are giving an advantage to the builds and characters that can take the most advantage of that particular stat.
I'm not saying that BotF is necessarily in need of a giant nerf, but with the current system and the power of HP stacking, it's an item that I take nearly every game, with little concern for what character I'm playing, or for what characters my opponents are playing. It's easier and cheaper to compensate for not having something like the anklet (Use wand of speed) than it is to compensate for not having the blood vial.
And I have to agree with Stacked, there is very little chance of dying early if you take BotF at the start of a game. You can quite happily get nuked twice and walk away with over half health.