As far as your “financially guaranteed” academic matches (CIC), no there’s no strict academic difference between Hendrix, Illinois Wesleyan, Southwestern (TX), U Scranton. None is “better” than the other, they’re all good and will be intense for a premed. Environment is very different though - for example, Hendrix is in the South( though not really “Southern”!), smaller, liberal, and quirky, with signature experiential programs (essentially, they help you pay to volunteer abroad and get you a stipend to do research or internship) whereas Illinois Wesleyan is larger, midwestern, has Greek life, and is fairly mainstream. Research all four since there are many more differences if you include UScranton and Southwestern TX.
If I were you, I’d apply to at least 2 of them, based on fit.
As for your safeties, pick your 2-3 favorites from Allegheny, Concordia-Moorhead, DePaul, Guilford, Pace, St Edwards (Austin), Wittenberg, and Drew. Explore each website/request information. I know that Allegheny, Concordia-Moorhead, and S Edwards have excellent reputation for premeds, but you’d have to check into the support and advising yourself.
As for TE, it’s more of a roll of the dice for you. You’d have to check whether the schools offer full tuition or not and how competitive that is. Occidental, Connecticut College, GWU, Centre, Tulane, Bard, Fordham, Skidmore, Elon, Dickinson, Franklin&Marshall, URichmond.
should all be on your list as high matches/low reaches (due to selectivity) so check out the TE conditions.
Eckerd, Rollins, Butler, St Lawrence, Willamette, Gustavus Adolphus, Stevens, Hobart and William Smith, Creighton, Ohio Wesleyan, Muhlenberg, Ursinus, St Michael’s, are all good matches for a future premed.
Valparaiso, Luther, Stonehill, U St Thomas, U St Louis, UPortland, Carroll MT, Nebraska Wesleyan, Elizabethtown, Susquehanna, Gonzaga, are additional safeties if you don’t like the ones above, and probably easier to get TE from than the ones above.
I’d prefer any of those colleges to UMKC.