McDonald’s recently asked federal officials for an exemption to rules that would ban the kind of health plans many of its restaurant workers have, because the existing policies sharply limit coverage. The McDonald’s push was first reported by The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday night. A McDonald’s spokeswoman declined to comment on that report, and the company has denied any intention of dropping coverage for its employees.

So far, the administration has signaled at least some willingness to listen. In the case of McDonald’s, federal health officials told the insurer responsible for providing these plans that it would not be affected by new rules prohibiting annual limits on coverage. The new waiver will allow McDonald’s and other companies to continue offering such plans, which cap benefits, to their workers.

The administration has already issued dozens of such waivers, as insurers and companies try to influence proposals for regulations to put the law in place. As far as giving insurers continued leeway to sell more restrictive coverage than the legislation intended, administration officials say they are trying to ensure that people do not lose their benefits before 2014, when the law is fully in effect.

“It’s the best some people can do right now, and we don’t want to disrupt it,” said Nancy-Ann DeParle, who heads the Office of Health Reform at the White House. She emphasized that the administration had been working closely with insurers and employers to deal with their concerns and objections to some of the rules. “I think we’re working together very constructively,” she said.

McDonald’s, which confirmed that its insurance carrier received a waiver from the government on annual limits, says it is negotiating with federal officials and others to determine how best to maintain employee coverage. Many of its restaurant workers are covered under plans that do not provide broad protections and limit individual insurance coverage to a few thousand dollars a year. Such plans are known as mini-med or limited benefit policies. Medical bills beyond those limits have to be paid out of pocket by employees.