“With each level of this Perk, you gain an additional 4 Hit Points every time you advance a level. This is in addition to the Hit Points you already gain per level based off of your Endurance.”— Fallout 2 In-game description
Every time the player character gains a level, they gain an additional four Hit Points for each rank of this perk. With two ranks of Lifegiver, that's +8 HP each level, which is more than 10 points in Endurance would give you.
Although it's not clear from the description, Lifegiver grants +4 HP for every level gained, including the level when the perk was taken. (Fallout Tactics does not give the HP on the level you take the perk.)
“You embody wellness! You also receive an instant Health increase, which has no downsides (except it takes slightly longer to inflict Nerd Rage! on a set of foes). If you need extra Health, this is a must-take perk.”— Fallout 4 Vault Dweller's Survival Guide description
You instantly gain another +20 maximum Health, and slowly regenerate lost Health.
001d2467
This is best as an early-game perk. The math is such that, once one reaches Level 32, they would have been better off just putting 1 more point into Endurance than in getting a level in the Lifegiver perk. However, the benefits of +20 Health early game can be considerable.
The health regeneration gained from the third rank grants the player 0.5% health every second. However, health is not regenerated while in combat (i.e. when enemies are nearby.) The health regeneration is fast enough (out of combat) to be a real convenience.
In Fallout: New Vegas, the health that Lifegiver grants is excluded from the 50% calculation for Ferocious Loyalty. [verified]
