(Lexington) - Governor Mark Sanford announced Tuesday plans to veto a bill, which could have opened the door for Lexington Medical Center to build a heart surgery center.

"We have really struggled with this issue," explained Sanford, during a press conference held at the South Carolina Hospital Association.

If signed into law, House Bill 3184 would have eased requirements used by the Department of Health and Environmental Control to determine if a hospital should offer heart surgery.

"Let's live by that rule system or let's completely replace them," said Sanford.

The bill was drafted after DHEC denied Lexington Medical Center a "certificate of need" to build the heart hospital.

The legislation would have allowed hospitals to perform open-heart surgeries if they are in a county that has no heart surgery center and the hospital performs 1,200 heart catherizations a year. Lexington Medical Center met both those requirements.

"It's a crying shame and disgrace to get this far in the process and have the governor yank the rug from under the county of Lexington," explained Rep. Kenny Bingham, (R)-Lexington.

Lexington County lawmakers vowed to fight the veto, which could be overturned by a two-third majority vote in the House of Representatives.