Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income (Unaudited) - USD ($) shares in Millions, $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2020	Sep. 30, 2019	Sep. 30, 2020	Sep. 30, 2019
Income Statement [Abstract]
Net sales	$ 2,972	$ 2,851	$ 8,492	$ 8,323
Cost of sales	1,777	1,621	5,096	4,860
Gross margin	1,195	1,230	3,396	3,463
Selling, general and administrative expenses	601	627	1,819	1,869
Research and development expenses	123	144	386	439
Other operating expense (income), net	1	(44)	(19)	(81)
Operating income	470	503	1,210	1,236
Interest expense, net	39	13	96	51
Other (income) expense, net	16	9	32	(8)
Income before income taxes	415	481	1,082	1,193
Income tax expense	56	106	143	163
Net income	359	375	939	1,030
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests	3	6	5	6
Net income attributable to Baxter stockholders	$ 356	$ 369	$ 934	$ 1,024
Earnings per share
Basic (in dollars per share)	$ 0.70	$ 0.72	$ 1.83	$ 2.01
Diluted (in dollars per share)	$ 0.69	$ 0.71	$ 1.81	$ 1.97
Weighted-average number of shares outstanding
Basic (in shares)	511	511	509	510
Diluted (in shares)	518	520	517	520