1. It is mandated that every American purchase health insurance or pay a fee.
2. To assist in this, the state and/or federal government sets up health care exchanges with Bronze/Silver/Gold/Platinum plans offered by the government. The plans are not run by the government, but contracted to private insurers in each state depending on who bidded the lowest price to be the official bronze, silver, gold, or platinum plan in each state.
3. If you can still not afford the lowest price of these four plans, the government will also be providing tax subsidies depending on your distance from the poverty line--above 100%, 200%, 300%, or 400% to assist you in this payment.
4. Note the subsidies are only for above the poverty line. If you are below it, you receive an even greater subsidy: the ability to now join Medicaid through a state run Medicaid expansion, paid fully by the federal government. That's right--free health insurance for the poor at not cost to the state government. Unfortunately, many states run by anti-Obamacare governors and legislatures have decided against expanding Medicaid, leaving millions of below poverty line Americans with no insurance and no subsidy. Meaning, the poorest Texans, Alabamans, North Dakotans, etc. will be forced to pay fees for no insurance because the state government refuses to accept free money to give them insurance. On the bright side, the emergency room costs, costs to employers of low income earners, and loss of income by Medicaid institutions is economic damnation for these states and competition between states will eventually require them to file suit.
That, my friends, is Obamacare in four points. Note how the longest, most convoluted point of the four is the only one where anti-Obamacare influences have tried to meddle in.
It doesn't sound nearly as bad as the right wing media made it sound (not surprisingly) but it also sounds much more simple than the the way the Administration/Dem supporters sold it. Both sides, thus, have kind of done the program an injustice in either purposely misleading, or badly advertising, what would seem to be a good set of reforms, to the American public.
And just to bring the point home:
How would Obamacare affect a 23 year old minimum wage (part time) worker in New Jersey? If that person has no real savings or assets and only lives on that minimum wage? Would they be able to get reasonable health coverage (IE dental, emergency care, vision)? Or would a good chunk of their paycheck go toward covering said insurance?
And what if said person moved to Texas, as you mentioned them in your post?
