Wichita ? A federal lawsuit claims HCA Inc., in an effort to maximize profits, compromises patient care by deliberately understaffing registered nurses at its hospitals.

The lawsuit was filed Monday in federal court in Wichita by a woman who claims her husband died at HCA’s Wesley Medical Center in Wichita because the hospital did not have enough nurses working to care for him when he was hospitalized in 2004.

The lawsuit seeks class-action status and asks HCA, the country’s largest for-profit hospital chain, to repay no less than $12.5 billion to millions of patients who have been treated at its hospitals. The chain operates 182 hospitals and 94 outpatient surgery centers in 22 states, England and Switzerland, according to its Web site.

HCA spokesman Jeff Prescott said the company would defend itself vigorously against the lawsuit.

Wichita lawyer Lawrence Williamson claims in the lawsuit that HCA set out in about 1996 to become a $50 billion company and has tried to reach that goal by reducing costs, primarily by cutting staff. The company reported revenues of $24.5 billion in 2005.