There were too many points in your text for me to address but ill just start with these. I got kind of lazy towards the end
The flagship goal of the ACA was to make it so people with pre-existing conditions could get health insurance. Imagine having type 1 Diabetes, losing your health insurance for whatever reason, and not being able to get more insurance to pay the $1000/mo for insulin. What about a normally healthy woman becoming pregnant -- pre-existing condition. Asmthma -- pre-existing condition. etc.
The individual mandate that taxed uninsured individuals was the backbone of the ACA for two important reasons: the ability to pass the law under rules of budget reconciliation, and to offset the additional costs associated with the guaranteeing people woith pre-existing conditions could get insurance.
[Budget Reconciliation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reconciliation_(United_States_Congress)#:~:text=The%20procedure%20overrides%20the%20Senate's,president's%20as%20the%2