I don’t believe anyone said JHU or Harvard were “obviously the best.” Only @iwannabe_Brown is coming out so strongly, lol. While prestige of a university undoubtedly turns heads and raises eyebrows when you say where you attended (and the associated rigor of getting into the school and doing well there), that hardly is the most important factor. I think the most important factors for selecting one UG over another first and foremost is “fit,” because you need to do well wherever you go, and emotional well-being and happiness determine GPA performance more than any other single factor. Call me un-romantic, but I also don’t think there is one perfect school for every person - I actually think the people who form your immediate friend’s circle end up determining your experience at a school more than anything else - and that is largely determined by the individual student, the class of students that year, and fortune. Beyond fit, for me, the most important selection criteria for UG revolve around pre-med advising and unique, meaningful, and easily available EC opportunities. JHU, Harvard and Brown all offer stellar pre-med advising that includes gap-year assistance and the all-powerful committee letter service (which fewer schools offer than you would imagine, I actually couldn’t confirm that UPENN offers this service). As for ECs, there are many things to consider: small schools have less competition for opportunities that are available, larger schools normally have more opportunities, schools in/near metropolitan areas typically have more opportunities and offer opportunities working with minority and/or disadvantaged populations (which med schools absolutely love). Also Harvard and JHU are massive research giants, and so if you are interested in the sciences (and honestly, any field in my mind) and want to reinforce the concepts you learn in class while gaining marketable skills (which is a huge problem for college graduates to demonstrate to employers), then I would consider research opportunities a huge plus not only for medical school (research isn’t required but being published and showing an aptitude for the sciences in a professional setting surely demonstrates desirable traits they are looking for), but for employment and/or grad school acceptance as a backup plan if medicine doesn’t work out.
As you said though, the problem is pre-meds everywhere are not slacking. Competition is continuing to increase with a rise in not only the number of applicants, but the age and expertise (more degrees, previous employment in healthcare, various certifications, significant research experience, etc.) of incoming medical students (as well as an increase in the GPA and MCAT scores of applicants and accepted applicants). The goal then as a med school applicant is to stand out. Some people accomplish this by attending very difficult schools and doing well, others with phenomenal ECs, while others with great MCAT scores, or a combination of these factors. There’s no one way to medical school, and no one is arguing that, but I would argue that many of these prestigious universities do offer the resources (both from the students/faculty they recruit and the opportunities they attract/create) to increase your odds of acceptance and keep you motivated on the path to medicine even after you graduate (since gap years are the new norm).