Financing (Beckman Coulter Indebtedness) (Narrative) (Details) (USD $) In Millions, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended				3 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012		Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010	Sep. 30, 2011 Beckman Coulter	Jun. 30, 2011 Beckman Coulter
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Fair value of debt at acquisition date	$ 5,917.3	[1]	$ 5,790.1			$ 1,600.0
Charges associated with redemption of notes	0		32.9	0	33.0
Charges associated with redemption of notes, after tax					21
Charges associated with redemption of notes, per diluted share					$ 0.03
Principal payments due 2013	55
Principal payments due 2014	407
Principal payments due 2015	29
Principal payments due 2016	2,689
Principal payments due 2017	14
Principal payments due after 2017	2,149
Interest Paid	$ 150		$ 133	$ 107

[1] Effective January 1, 2012, the Company is required to disclose, on a prospective basis, the level within the fair value hierarchy at which the fair values of the financial instruments are categorized. As of December 31, 2012, available-for-sale securities and short and long-term borrowings were categorized as level 1, while the currency swap agreement was categorized as level 2.