Reception and Treatment Center

The Reception and Treatment Center (RTC) opened in 2022 and represents the joining of the former Diagnostic and Evaluation Center and the Lincoln Correctional Center, both of which originally opened in 1979. The RTC is the agency’s Center of Excellence in the administration of health services. 

Phase two of the RTC expansion opened in late 2022 and includes 384 beds designed for individuals who require the highest level of general population security. In 2026, a 64-bed mental health unit and a 32-bed geriatric unit opened, each designed to support the unique needs of the population. Also in 2026, a 30-bed unit was renovated to serve as the agency's secure youth unit.

One area of the RTC is designated for intake operations for all males inmates, including those sentenced to the custody of NDCS, parole returnees, apprehended escapees, interstate transfer admissions/returnees, county safekeepers and 90-day evaluators sentenced by the court for assessment.

The medium/maximum-security facility also accommodates populations requiring specialized housing, including: protective management, residential mental health and acute/subacute and chronic mental health treatment.  The RTC has the agency’s only residential substance abuse treatment unit for males.