Kuryu Rakusen-en Sanatorium, or National Sanatorium Kuryu Rakusen-en is a sanatorium for leprosy or ex-leprosy patients situated at Kusatsu

Kusatsu

Kusatsu may refer to:* Kusatsu, Shiga, a city in western Japan** Kusatsu Line, operated by JR West**MIO Biwako Kusatsu, local football club* Kusatsu, Gunma, a town in eastern Japan** Kusatsu , operated by JR East**Thespa Kusatsu, local football club...

-machi, Azuma-gun, Gunma Prefecture, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 which started in 1932.

Pre-Rakusen-en days

• 1869:There was a big fire in the Kusatsu Hot Spring. Later, a publicity book "Kusatsu Onsen Shi(Kusatsu Hot Spring is good for health) circulated and by and by leprosy patients gathered around Kusatsu.
• 1888:Erwin Bälz
  Erwin Bälz
  Erwin Bälz was a German internist, anthropologist, personal physician to the Japanese Imperial Family and cofounder of modern medicine in Japan.- Biography :...
  
   wrote that after studying Kusatsu Hot Spring, Japanese hot springs should be used for health purposes.
• 1907:Bertrand met opposition to his plan of building a hospital in Kusatsu.
• 1913:Hannah Riddell
  Hannah Riddell
  Hannah Riddell was an English woman who devoted her life to the salvation of Hansen's disease patients in Japan.-Early life and her determination:...
  
   sent Missionary Yonehara to Kusatsu.
• 1914:Koenkai(Light and salt society), a Christian group was formed in Kusatsu.

Cornwall Legh

• 1915: Cornwall Legh
  Cornwall Legh
  Cornwall Legh, Mary Helena Cornwall Legh was a highly-educated English woman, who devoted herself after age 50, to missionary work in Japan and especially to the welfare, education and medical care of leprosy patients in Kusatsu, Gunma Prefecture, Japan.-England and Japan:She was born at...
  
   inspected Kusatsu.
• 1916: Cornwall Legh
  Cornwall Legh
  Cornwall Legh, Mary Helena Cornwall Legh was a highly-educated English woman, who devoted herself after age 50, to missionary work in Japan and especially to the welfare, education and medical care of leprosy patients in Kusatsu, Gunma Prefecture, Japan.-England and Japan:She was born at...
  
  started the Barnaba mission.
• 1917: St. Barnaba Hospital started with Dr. Kesa Hattori and Nurse Chiyo Mikami.
• 1924:Suzuran Hospital was started by Kesa Hattori and Chiyo Mikami but soon closed by the death of Hattori.
• 1929:St.Barnaba Hospital was renewed (Dr. Ichiro Tsuruta).
• 1930:The population of Yunosawa Community was 817, one third of Kusatsu.

Kusatsu Rakusen-en Sanatorium

• 1932: Kusatsu Rakusen-en Sanatorium started (Director: Yoshiichi Furumi)
• 1938:Special prison "Juukanbou" was built within the sanatorium.
• 1941:St.Barnaba Hospital was closed. 44 patients were transferred to Kusatsu Rakusen-en.
• 1947: The cruel condition of the special prison was spotlighted. The director was suspended from office.
• Apr 1996:The 1953 Leprosy Prevention Law was abolished.
• Jul 1998: The trial for compensation started.
• May 11, 2001: The trial for compensation ruled that the previous Leprosy Prevention was unconstitutional.
• May 25, 2001: The trial for compensation was confirmed. The compensation of 8,000,000 yen to 14,000,000 yen was given to patients depending on the duration of unconstitutional periods.

Number of In-patients

The number of in-patients is the sum of patients which changed not only by the newly diagnosed hospitalized and those who died among in-patients, by other factors such as the number of patients who escaped or were discharged, depending on the condition of the times. Recently they were encouraged to be discharged, but the long period of the segregation policy causing leprosy stigma might influence the number of those who went into the society.

Year	Number of in-patients
1945	1314
1950	1040
1955	1064
1960	994
1965	911
1970	811
1975	777
1980	689
1985	580
1990	477
1995	401
1999	309

Year	Number of in-patients
2003	251
2004	236
2005	223
2006	200
2007	186
2008	169