i sure would like to know what you found becuase the answer as far as i can tell is… there are no options

No one would have an issue with them making this demand of Play Playstore Devs. This demand is being made to every dev of EVERY APP. That includes stores that google has absolutely no control. That means that I no longer have the right to take my own risks and to trust who I want to trust.

They should absolutely make this a requirement to join their store. Id support that. They have no right taking away or limiting my ability to install applications on a device I own