Preventable was met with positive critical reception, noted for humanizing the pandemic and the author's accessible style.

[2][4] In Preventable, Sridhar notes how Nicola Sturgeon was more willing to take her advice than Boris Johnson, whose activities are compared to Jair Bolsonaro's and Donald Trump's.

[2] Critique of Johnson continues, noting his absence at COBRA meetings and his decision visit COVID-19-positive patients in a hospital.

[1] The book is also critical of the UK's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies for their groupthink, their adoption of a herd immunity strategy, and their incorrect pessimism around the speed at which an effective vaccine could be produced.

[2] Sridhar's predictions are described as "prescient" and her analysis as "scathing" by Oliver Barns, writing in the Financial Times.