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BENEFIT PLANS | 3 Months Ended
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Mar. 31, 2012
Notes to Financial Statements [Abstract] |
BENEFIT PLANS | BENEFIT PLANS We have funded defined benefit plans in Japan and the United States which cover substantially all of our full-time employees. Additionally, we maintain non-qualified, unfunded supplemental retirement plans that provide defined pension benefits in excess of limits imposed by federal tax law for certain Japanese, U.S. and former employees. We provide certain health care benefits for eligible U.S. retired employees, their beneficiaries and covered dependents ("other postretirement benefits"). The health care plan is contributory and unfunded. Substantially all of our U.S. employees may become eligible to receive other postretirement benefits if they retire at age 55 or older with at least 15 years of service or if they retire when their age plus service, in years, equals or exceeds 80. At retirement, an employee is given an opportunity to elect continuation of coverage under our medical plan until age 65. For certain employees and former employees, additional coverage is provided for all medical expenses for life. Pension and other postretirement benefit expenses, included in acquisition and operating expenses in the consolidated statement of earnings, included the following components:
|  | Three Months Ended March 31,
|  | Pension Benefits |  | Other
|  | Japan |  | U.S. |  | Postretirement Benefits
(In millions) |  | 2012 |  | 2011 |  | 2012 |  | 2011 |  | 2012 |  | 2011
Components of net periodic benefit cost: |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Service cost |  | $ | 4 |  |  | $ | 4 |  |  | $ | 6 |  |  | $ | 4 |  |  | $ | 1 |  |  | $ | 1 |
Interest cost |  | 3 |  |  | 2 |  |  | 7 |  |  | 7 |  |  | 1 |  |  | 1 |
Expected return on plan assets |  | (1 | ) |  | (1 | ) |  | (4 | ) |  | (4 | ) |  | 0 |  |  | 0 |
Amortization of net actuarial loss |  | 1 |  |  | 1 |  |  | 2 |  |  | 1 |  |  | 0 |  |  | 0 |
Net periodic (benefit) cost |  | $ | 7 |  |  | $ | 6 |  |  | $ | 11 |  |  | $ | 8 |  |  | $ | 2 |  |  | $ | 2 |
During the three months ended March 31, 2012, Aflac Japan contributed approximately $6 million (using the weighted-average yen/dollar exchange rate for the three-month period ending March 31, 2012) to the Japanese funded defined benefit plan, and Aflac U.S. did not make a contribution to the U.S. funded defined benefit plan. For additional information regarding our Japanese and U.S. benefit plans, see Note 13 of the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in our annual report to shareholders for the year ended December 31, 2011.

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